MusicStation

For the Japanese television program, see Music Station.

MusicStation

Opened	June 14, 2007; 4 years ago (2007-06-14)
Platforms	Mobile, web, PC, in-home, in-car
Format	Tailored to device and network: includes eAAC+, AAC+, AAC, WMA, MP3, Dolby Pulse
Catalogue	International Licensing Agreements with Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and EMI
Availability	US Canada UK Ireland Australia New Zealand France Germany Italy Spain Austria The Netherlands Belgium Sweden Switzerland Croatia Hungary Singapore Hong Kong Taiwan South Africa Brazil Mexico
Features	Unlimited music services
Website	www.omnifone.com

MusicStation is a music service platform developed by Omnifone. The cloud based platform works across a number of different digital device platforms and is tailored specifically for various partners^[1] including RIM,^[2] Sony,^[3] Sony Ericsson,^[4] HP,^[5] BSkyB,^[6] Vodafone,^[7] Telenor,^[8] Hutchison Telecom^[9] and Vodacom.^[10]

Services

In February 2009 Omnifone introduced MusicStation Next Generation,^[11] a white label unlimited music audio and video download and streaming solution for ISPs and consumer electronics device vendors. The cloud based solution offers interoperable music on a wide range of connected devices, including home entertainment systems, gaming consoles, and car audio systems.

MusicStation Max^[12] is a white label pre-licensed music service development programme for mobile device vendors. Omnifone partners with device vendors to develop MusicStation Max powered devices pre-licensed for unlimited music downloads.^[13] The service enables users to download, play and share unlimited amounts of music directly on their device.

The service enables users and keep a specific amount their favourite music at the end of their contract. MusicStation Max is interoperable with MusicStation Desktop Edition^[14] with both services provided by partners across multiple territories.^[15]

MusicStation Max allows users at the end of the subscription to migrate their music to their next MusicStation Max device and continue access to unlimited music downloads or to keep playing their favourite tracks. The first handset vendor signed up for MusicStation Max is Sony Ericsson for PlayNow plus.^[16] Omnifone has reported that it is in talks with a number of vendors for MusicStation Max.

Sony Ericsson's PlayNow services uses MusicStation Max.^[13] The first Walkman handsets with PlayNow plus were launched on 24 November 2008 by Telenor in Sweden. Sony Ericsson has rolled out the service in 2009 with Swisscom in Switzerland, Singtel in Singapore and Orange in Austria with further launches planned with mobile carriers internationally.

MusicStation Desktop Edition^[14] enables consumers to download, play and share music, direct to their desktop computer. The service is provided in partnership with personal computer vendors, mobile carrier networks, and broadband providers. The service offers music recommendations, connected community services and features, and an automatic back-up of private and public playlists to the cloud, plus online search and discovery capabilities. The service is able to synchronise with all other MusicStation-powered services and mobile devices via the cloud.

In April 2009 Hutchison Telecom became the first^[15] Omnifone partner to introduce MusicStation Desktop Edition to users in Hong Kong on its 3 network.

Omnifone’s MusicStation was the first subscription based unlimited music download service available on mobiles in the UK launching with Vodafone in November 2007.^[17]

In June 2008, Omnifone announced that MusicStation had become the largest subscription based unlimited music download service in the UK within seven months of launching on Vodafone.^[18]

Availability of licensed content from major labels

Country	Universal	Sony	EMI	Warner
Australia	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Austria	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Belgium	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Brazil	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Canada	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Croatia	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
France	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Germany	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Hong Kong	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Hungary	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Ireland	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Italy	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Mexico	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Taiwan	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
The Netherlands	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
New Zealand	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Singapore	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
South Africa	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Spain	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Sweden	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Switzerland	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
United Kingdom	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
United States	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes

History

Main article: Omnifone

• 14th January 2003: British Entrepreneurs Rob Lewis, Phil Sant and Mark Knight form Omnifone

• 12th February 2007: Omnifone announces MusicStation^[19]

• 14th June 2007: MusicStation goes live with its first rollout in Sweden with Telenor^[20]

• 22nd October 2007: MusicStation launches in Hong Kong with 3^[21]

• 1st November 2007: MusicStation launches in South Africa with Vodacom^[22]

• 1st November 2007: MusicStation launches in the UK with Vodafone^[23]

• 12th February 2008: Omnifone launches MusicStation Max, a pre-licensed unlimited music phone development programme with LG signed up as a handset manufacturer^[12]

• 15th September 2008: MusicStation launches in New Zealand with Vodafone^[24]

• 22nd September 2008: MusicStation launches in Australia with Vodafone^[25]

• 24th September 2008: Omnifone announces partnership with Sony Ericsson to power PlayNow plus, its pre-licensed unlimited downloads service across Walkman mobiles^[26]

• 14th November 2008: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Sweden with Telenor^[27]

• 8th January 2009: Omnifone announces partnership with Gracenote to bring unlimited music to multiple device platforms^[28]

• 12th January 2009: Omnifone powered in-car entertainment system CarStars wins CNET ‘Best of CES’ Car Tech award at the 2009 International Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas; the largest consumer electronics event in the world^[29]

• 16th February 2009: Omnifone announces MusicStation Next Generation unlimited music service for ISPs to fight piracy online, confirming reports that it is in discussions with BSkyB as its first ISP customer^[30]

• 13th March 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Switzerland with Swisscom^[31]

• 2nd April 2009: MusicStation Desktop Edition launches in Hong Kong^[15]

• 23rd April 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Singapore with Singtel^[32]

• 9th June 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Austria with Orange^[33]

• 8th September 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in The Netherlands with T-Mobile^[34]

• 14th October 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Hungary with T-Mobile^[35]

• 19th October 2009: BSkyB launches Sky Songs streaming and downloads service in the UK^[36]

• 23rd October 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Brazil with Vivo^[37]

• 9th November 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Mexico with Telcel^[38]

• 20th November 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Croatia with T-Mobile^[39]

• 21st November 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Singapore with M1^[40]

• 8th January 2010: Omnifone extends relationship with Gracenote, allows for cloud-based music solutions in more than 30 countries in 2010^[41]

• 25th January 2010: Omnifone announces partnership with HP for MusicStation on PCs in 10 countries across Europe^[5]

• 15th February 2010: Omnifone announces MusicStation for Android^[42]

• 16th February 2010: Omnifone first to encode its global music catalogue into Dolby Pulse file format for cloud based digital music services in 2010^[43]

• 22nd December 2010: Sony launches Q Music Unlimited cloud music service powered by Omnifone in the UK and Ireland^[44]

• 22nd January 2011: Sony launches Q Music Unlimited cloud music service powered by Omnifone in France, Germany, Italy and Spain^[45]

• 17th February 2011: Sony launches Q Music Unlimited cloud music service powered by Omnifone in the US, Australia and New Zealand^[46]

• 25th August 2011: RIM launches BBM Music social music service in beta - powered by Omnifone in the US, Canada and the UK ^[47]

Awards

Main article: Omnifone

Omnifone has won a number of awards for MusicStation including:

• Oracle UK Partner Awards 2009 – Most Innovative use of Oracle Technology

• CNET ‘Best of CES’ Car Tech Award 2009 – with Gracenote

• Global Mobile Awards 2008 – Best Mobile Music Service Award

• Mobile Industry Awards 2008 – Best Mobile Internet Service

• Mobile Entertainment Forum (MEF) Meffys 2007 – Music Service Award Meffy

• Juniper Research Future Music Awards 2008 – Gold Award for Mobile Music

• MCA (Mobile Content Awards) 2008: Silver Award: Best entertainment service

• MAMA (Mobile Advertising & Marketing Awards) 2008: Gold Award: Most Effective Use of Music

See also:

• Omnifone

• Rob Lewis

• Sony Ericsson PlayNow plus

References

1. ^ Screen Digest: February 2009: Omnifone unveils MusicStation Next Generation
2. ^ Paid Content: 25 August 2011: RIM Breaks Social Ground With Its New BBM Music Service,
3. ^ Engadget: 22 December 2010: Sony's Music Unlimited subscription service ready to stream tunes to PS3s and Bravia TVs in the UK
4. ^ Screen Digest: 24 September 2008: Sony Ericsson steals Nokia's thunder with music service
5. ^ ^{a b} The Guardian: 25 January 2010: HP deal strengthens Omnifone's position in digital music battle
6. ^ Business Week: 24 January 2010: Hewlett-Packard Computers in Europe Gain Omnifone Music Service
7. ^ Finanacial Times: 11 September 2007: Vodafone reveals its answer to iPhone
8. ^ Financial Times: 13 June 2007: Mobile phone groups take on iPhone
9. ^ Record of the Day: 2 April 2009: Omnifone brings unlimited music downloads to PC and Mobile with MusicStation Desktop Edition
10. ^ Business Day: 31 October 2007: Vodacom to boost data revenue with music download service
11. ^ Daily Telegraph, 16th February 2009: Omnifone to launch unlimited online music download service with ISPs
12. ^ ^{a b} Daily Telegraph, 12th February 2008: Free mobile music download service launched
13. ^ ^{a b} Business Week, 25th September 2008: Sony Ericsson Phones To Come With Music Too
14. ^ ^{a b} Music Week, 2nd April 2009: Omnifone goes PC
15. ^ ^{a b c} Billboard, 2nd April 2009: Hong Kong First To Get New Omnifone Unlimited Service
16. ^ Sony Ericsson.com
17. ^ Billboard, 1st November 2007: Nokia, Vodafone Launch UK Mobile Music Services
18. ^ Billboard, 9th June 2008: MusicStation Claims U.K. Market-Leader Status
19. ^ Financial Times, 13th June 2007: Mobile phone groups take on iPhone
20. ^ BBC.co.uk, 14th June 2007: Sound start to music on mobiles
21. ^ TMC.net, 31st October 2007: Omnifone Launches MusicStation with 3 Hong Kong
22. ^ Bizcommunity.com, 1st November 2007: Vodacom launches music downloads service
23. ^ Mobile Choice, 2nd November 2007: Vodafone offers unlimited music downloads
24. ^ "Vodafone's unlimited music plan". The Dominion Post. 12 September 2008. http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/623461. Retrieved 27 October 2011. 
25. ^ Sydney Morning Herald, 22nd September 2008: Unlimited music for the price of a coffee
26. ^ BBC News Beat, 25th September 2008: Walkman phone to take on Nokia
27. ^ Easybourse, 13th November 2008: Sony Ericsson's PlayNow Plus Music Service Opens Friday In Sweden
28. ^ Billboard, 8th January 2009: Omnifone, Gracenote Partner On Integrated Unlimited Music
29. ^ CNET, 8th January 2009: Gracenote puts a star in your car
30. ^ Daily Telegraph, 16th February 2009: Mobile World Congress: Omnifone to launch unlimited online music download service with ISPs
31. ^ Trading Markets, 13th March 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Switzerland
32. ^ Crave.com, 23rd April 2009: Sony Ericsson announces PlayNow plus in Singapore
33. ^ Billboard, 9th June 2009: Austria Gets Unlimited Sony Ericsson Service
34. ^ Engadget: 11 September 2009: T-Mobile, Sony Ericsson bring PlayNow Plus to Netherlands
35. ^ HWSW.hu: 14 October 2009: Korlátlan zeneletöltés mobilra - itt a PlayNow plus
36. ^ Forrester: 12 October 2009: Sky Songs: First Take
37. ^ 12 December 2009: Aliado Digital: Brasil: Sony Ericsson lanza PlayNow Plus
38. ^ 20 March 2010: Seusers.com: Pasos para poner PlayNow plus
39. ^ 20 November 2009: Trading Markets: T-Mobile introduces Sony Ericsson PlayNow Plus in Croatia
40. ^ 21 November 2009: OCWorkBench: M1 and Sony Ericsson today announce the launch of Sony Ericsson Yari™ with PlayNow™ plus from 21 Nov
41. ^ Music Week: 8 January 2010: Omnifone and Gracenote extend deal
42. ^ Music Week: 15 February 2010: MusicStation comes to Android
43. ^ Music Week: 16 February 2010: Dolby and Omnifone launch new format for the cloud
44. ^ Engadget: 22 December 2010: Sony's Music Unlimited subscription service ready to stream tunes to PS3s and Bravia TVs in the UK
45. ^ Tech Crunch: 22 January 2011: Sony’s cloud-based Qriocity music service debuts in France, Germany, Italy and Spain
46. ^ Bloomberg: 17 February 2011: Sony Music Streaming Service Debuts in U.S. to Challenge iTunes
47. ^ Wired: 25 August 2011: BlackBerry Messenger adds streaming music service

External links

• Omnifone
• Sony Ericsson PlayNow plus
• Vodafone UK MusicStation
• Vodafone Australia MusicStation
• Vodafone New Zealand MusicStation
• 3 Hong Kong MusicStation
• Telenor Sweden MusicStation
• Swisscom Switzerland PlayNow plus
• Singtel Sony Ericsson PlayNow plus
• Orange Austria Sony Ericsson PlayNow plus

Further links

• Financial Times: Master of timing with a million downloads on his mind
• The Sun: Chief gets Voda confidence
• Tempus comment: Good tune
• For further media coverage highlights please visit: