- Omnifone
-
Omnifone 
Type Limited Industry Digital music services Founded January 14, 2003 Founder(s) Rob Lewis, Phil Sant, Mark Knight Headquarters London, United Kingdom Area served 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
MexicoKey people Rob Lewis (Executive Chairman), Jeff Hughes (CEO) Products Sony Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity, RIM BBM Music, MusicStation, Sony Ericsson PlayNow plus Employees 200 people Website www.omnifone.com Omnifone is an independent provider of cloud based unlimited music services to consumer electronics vendors, mobile carriers and internet service providers including RIM,[1]Sony,[2]HP,[3] Sony Ericsson,[4] Vodafone,[5] Telenor,[6] Hutchison Telecom[7] and Vodacom.[8]
Omnifone enables legitimate cloud based unlimited music consumption and a viable alternative to piracy across multiple in-home, in-car, mobile and PC platforms[9] and has launched its MusicStation powered unlimited music services across five continents[10] on a wide range[11][12] of devices.
Contents
Licensing
In June 2007 Omnifone secured the first international licensing agreements for unlimited music services with all four major music labels; Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and EMI Music.[13]
In January 2011 Omnifone secured Germany’s first global subscription licensing with GEMA[14]
Services
Main article: MusicStationMusicStation[15] is Omnifone’s multi-award winning[16] unlimited music service. The cloud based service works across a number of different digital device platforms and is tailored specifically for each market, platform and partner.[17] Omnifone provides a number of different variants of MusicStation:
MusicStation Next Generation is a white label unlimited music audio and video download and streaming solution for ISPs and consumer electronics device vendors.[18] The cloud based solution enables partners to provide interoperable unlimited music solutions on a range of connected devices, from home entertainment systems and gaming consoles to set-top boxes and in-car audio systems.[19] Omnifone confirmed reports that it is in discussions with BSkyB as its first ISP (Internet Service Provider) customer at GSMA Mobile World Congress 2009.[20] BSkyB launched its web based streaming and downloads service, Sky Songs, in the UK in October 2009 with Omnifone powering the service.[21]
MusicStation Max Manufacturer Edition is a white label pre-licensed unlimited music service development programme for mobile device vendors.[22] Omnifone partners with device vendors to develop MusicStation Max powered devices pre-licensed for unlimited music downloads enabling mobile device vendors and mobile carriers to compete effectively with Nokia’s Comes With Music service. The service enables users to download, play and share unlimited amounts of music directly on their device.[23] Omnifone has partnered with Sony Ericsson to power its unlimited music download service PlayNow plus with MusicStation Max.[24] 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[25] with further launches planned with mobile carriers internationally.[26]
MusicStation Desktop Edition enables consumers download, play and share music, direct to their desktop computer.[27] The service is provided in partnership with personal computer vendors, mobile carrier networks, and broadband providers.[28] MusicStation Desktop Edition provides a personalised user experience, which features play-based 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 [29] Omnifone partner to introduce MusicStation Desktop Edition to users in Hong Kong on its 3 network provided ‘in concert’ with MusicStation Mobile Edition providing unlimited access to music across mobile and PC. In January 2010 MusicStation launched across Europe on HP desktop and laptop PCs in the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria, Belgium, Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands.[30]
MusicStation Mobile Operator Edition is a multi-award winning unlimited music service which works across a wide range of mobile carrier handsets.[31] Omnifone partners with mobile carriers to deliver the client based service which gives consumers the ability to download, play and share unlimited amounts of music, direct-to-mobile for a small weekly fee with no data charges or bundled into selected price plans at no extra charge.[32] MusicStation is pre-installed by partner carriers or downloaded for free from carrier portals such as Vodafone Live!. Omnifone has rolled out MusicStation Mobile Edition across four continents with Vodafone UK,[33] Australia[34] and New Zealand,[35] Telenor Sweden,[36] 3 Hong Kong,[37] Vodacom South Africa.[38]
Key Management
- Jeff Hughes – Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
- Mathew Bagley – Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
- Doug Imrie – Chief Operating Officer (COO)
- Steve Pocock – Chief Technology Officer (CTO)
Founders
- Rob Lewis – Executive Chairman
- Phil Sant – Chief Engineer
- Mark Knight – Chief Architect
Non Executive Chairman
- Dr Shamil Chandaria
Funding
Omnifone is privately funded by the company’s founders Rob Lewis, Phil Sant and Mark Knight with additional funding from diversified alternative investment firm Sofaer Capital.[39]
Partnership with Gracenote
Omnifone announced a partnership with Gracenote in January 2009[40] to bring interoperable cloud based unlimited music services to multiple device platforms including in-car, in-home, PC and mobile devices. A demonstration of the Omnifone/Gracenote technology won a Best of CES award at the Consumer Electronics Show in January 2009[41] followed a year later by an announcement at CES 2010 that Omnifone had introduced digital music services with Gracenote technology in 20 countries in 2009.[42]
History
UK entrepreneurs Rob Lewis, Phil Sant and Mark Knight established Omnifone in January 2003 after more than seven years working together in the internet space founding software development company Cromwell Media (sold to InterX for £850m in 2000)[43] and IT industry news site Silicon.com[44] (sold to NASDAQ-listed CNET Networks, part of CBS in 2001).[45] The trio founded Omnifone to enable the next generation of digital content services to be delivered globally. The company spent four years developing its unlimited music service platform before announcing MusicStation in February 2007.[46]
-
- • 14th January 2003: British Entrepreneurs Rob Lewis, Phil Sant and Mark Knight form Omnifone[47]
-
- • 12th February 2007: Omnifone announces MusicStation [48]
-
- • 14th June 2007: MusicStation goes live with its first rollout in Sweden with Telenor [49]
-
- • 22nd October 2007: MusicStation launches in Hong Kong with 3 [50]
-
- • 1st November 2007: MusicStation launches in South Africa with Vodacom [51]
-
- • 1st November 2007: MusicStation launches in the UK with Vodafone [52]
-
- • 12th February 2008: Omnifone launches MusicStation Max, a pre-licensed unlimited music phone development programme with LG signed up as a handset manufacturer [53]
-
- • 15th September 2008: MusicStation launches in New Zealand with Vodafone [54]
-
- • 22nd September 2008: MusicStation launches in Australia with Vodafone [55]
-
- • 24th September 2008: Omnifone announces partnership with Sony Ericsson to power PlayNow plus, its pre-licensed unlimited downloads service across Walkman mobiles [56]
-
- • 14th November 2008: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Sweden with Telenor [57]
-
- • 8th January 2009: Omnifone announces partnership with Gracenote to bring unlimited music to multiple device platforms [58]
-
- • 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 [59]
-
- • 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 [60]
-
- • 13th March 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Switzerland with Swisscom [61]
-
- • 2nd April 2009: MusicStation Desktop Edition launches in Hong Kong[62]
-
- • 23rd April 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Singapore with Singtel [63]
-
- • 9th June 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Austria with Orange [64]
-
- • 8th September 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in The Netherlands with T-Mobile[65]
-
- • 14th October 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Hungary with T-Mobile[66]
-
- • 19th October 2009: BSkyB launches Sky Songs streaming and downloads service in the UK [67]
-
- • 23rd October 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Brazil with Vivo [68]
-
- • 9th November 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Mexico with Telcel[69]
-
- • 20th November 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Croatia with T-Mobile[70]
-
- • 21st November 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Singapore with M1[71]
-
- • 8th January 2010: Omnifone extends relationship with Gracenote, allows for cloud-based music solutions in more than 30 countries in 2010 [72]
-
- • 25th January 2010: Omnifone announces partnership with HP for MusicStation on PCs in 10 countries across Europe [73]
-
- • 15th February 2010: Omnifone announces MusicStation for Android [74]
-
- • 16th February 2010: Omnifone first to encode its global music catalogue into Dolby Pulse file format for cloud based digital music services in 2010 [75]
-
- • 16th April 2010: Omnifone appoints Jeff Hughes as CEO [76]
-
- • 22nd December 2010: Sony launches Q Music Unlimited cloud music service powered by Omnifone in the UK and Ireland [77]
-
- • 22nd January 2011: Sony launches Q Music Unlimited cloud music service powered by Omnifone in France, Germany, Italy and Spain [78]
-
- • 17th February 2011: Sony launches Q Music Unlimited cloud music service powered by Omnifone in the US, Australia and New Zealand [79]
-
- • 25th August 2011: RIM launches BBM Music social music service in beta - powered by Omnifone in the US, Canada and the UK [80]
Awards
Omnifone has won a number of awards for its unlimited music services including:
- Ernst & Young UK Entrepreneur of the Year Awards 2009: London & South – Rob Lewis, CEO, Omnifone[81]
- Oracle UK Partner Awards 2009 – Most Innovative use of Oracle Technology[82]
- CNET ‘Best of CES’ Car Tech Award 2009 – with Gracenote[83]
- Global Mobile Awards 2008 – Best Mobile Music Service Award[84]
- Mobile Industry Awards 2008 – Best Mobile Internet Service[85]
- Mobile Entertainment Forum (MEF) Meffys 2007 – Music Service Award Meffy[86]
- Juniper Research Future Music Awards 2008 – Gold Award for Mobile Music[87]
- PwC UK Technology, Innovation & Growth Awards 2008 Entrepreneur of the Year – Rob Lewis, CEO, Omnifone[88]
- Oracle Magazine Editor’s Choice Awards 2008 Embedded Architect of the Year – Phil Sant, COO and Mark Knight, Chief Architect, Omnifone[89]
- Mediatech 100 2008[90]
- MCA (Mobile Content Awards) 2008: Silver Award: Best entertainment service[91]
- MAMA (Mobile Advertising & Marketing Awards) 2008: Gold Award: Most Effective Use of Music[92]
- AO (Always On) Global 250 2008[93]
- Red Herring 100 2007 – EMEA Award 2007[94]
- Red Herring 100 2007 – Global Award 2007[95]
Locations
Omnifone is headquartered in Island Studios,[96] London, with its Asia Pacific HQ in Hong Kong.[97]
References
- ^ Paid Content: 25 August 2011: RIM Breaks Social Ground With Its New BBM Music Service,
- ^ Engadget: 22 December 2010: Sony's Music Unlimited subscription service ready to stream tunes to PS3s and Bravia TVs in the UK
- ^ The Guardian: 25 January 2010: HP deal strengthens Omnifone's position in digital music battle
- ^ Screen Digest: 24 September 2008: Sony Ericsson steals Nokia's thunder with music service
- ^ Finanacial Times: 11 September 2007: Vodafone reveals its answer to iPhone
- ^ Financial Times: 13 June 2007: Mobile phone groups take on iPhone
- ^ Record of the Day: 2 April 2009: Omnifone brings unlimited music downloads to PC and Mobile with MusicStation Desktop Edition
- ^ Business Day: 31 October 2007: Vodacom to boost data revenue with music download service
- ^ Billboard: January 2009: Omnifone, Gracenote Partner On Integrated Unlimited Music
- ^ Mobile Entertainment: 9 June 2009: PlayNow plus goes live with Orange Austria
- ^ BBC News: Sound start to music on mobiles
- ^ MusicWeek: 2 April 2009: MusicStation comes to PC
- ^ EMI: 14 June 2007: MusicStation Goes Live
- ^ Billboard: 24 January 2011: Omnifone & GEMA Announce Germany Deal @ MIDEM For Sony's Qriocity
- ^ MusicStation
- ^ Omnifone Awards
- ^ Screen Digest: 17 February 2009: Omnifone unveils MusicStation Next Generation
- ^ CNET: 17 February 2009: MusicStation Next Generation: Music bundled with broadband
- ^ Paid Content: 16 February 2009: Updated: Omnifone Touting Music Subscription Service To ISPs; Powering Sky’s New Service
- ^ The Guardian: 16 February 2009: BSkyB plans to launch music service to rival Apple's iTunes
- ^ Forrester: Sky Songs: First Take: 12 October 2009
- ^ Arts Technica: 12 February 2008: MusicStation Max brings unlimited, major-label downloads to mobiles
- ^ Screen Digest: 24 September 2008: Sony Ericsson steals Nokia's thunder with music service
- ^ MusicAlly blog: 24 September 2008: Omnifone gives more details on Sony Ericsson’s PlayArena plus
- ^ Mobile Entertainment: 2 April 2009: PlayNow plus live with Orange Austria
- ^ Reuters: 23 September 2008: Sony Ericsson to roll out music service in weeks
- ^ MusicWeek: 2 April 2009: Omnifone goes PC
- ^ CMU: 3 April 2009: Omnifone launch combined mobile/PC unlimited tunes service in Hong Kong
- ^ Billboard: 2 April 2009: MusicStation Desktop Edition Launches with 3HK in Hong Kong
- ^ The Guardian: 25 January 2010: HP deal strengthens Omnifone's position in digital music battle
- ^ BBC News: 14 June 2007: Sound start to music on mobiles
- ^ Mobile Today: 25 June 2008: Vodafone launches unlimited MusicStation bundles
- ^ Vodafone UK MusicStation
- ^ Vodafone Australia MusicStation
- ^ Vodafone NZ MusicStation
- ^ Telenor Sweden MusicStation
- ^ 3 MusicStation Hong Kong
- ^ Vodacom MusicStation South Africa
- ^ Financial Times: 8 April 2008: Master of timing with a million downloads on his mind
- ^ MusicWeek: January 2009: Omnifone Announces Partnership with Gracenote
- ^ CNET: January 2009: Gracenote and Omnifone win a Best of CES Award
- ^ The Industry Standard: 11 January 2010: Omnifone extends relationship with Gracenote
- ^ The Guardian: 12 February 2007: UK dotcom tycoons take on Apple with iPhone competitor
- ^ Silicon.com
- ^ The Guardian: 2 August 2002: Cnet buys Silicon.com
- ^ The Guardian: 12 February 2007: UK dotcom tycoons take on Apple with iPhone competitor
- ^ Business Week: 11 February 2008: Omnifone Offers Operators a New Tune
- ^ Financial Times: 13 June 2007: Mobile phone groups take on iPhone
- ^ BBC.co.uk: 14 June 2007: Sound start to music on mobiles
- ^ TMC.net: 31 October 2007: Omnifone Launches MusicStation with 3 Hong Kong
- ^ Bizcommunity.com: 1 November 2007: Vodacom launches music downloads service
- ^ Mobile Choice: 2 November 2007: Vodafone offers unlimited music downloads
- ^ Daily Telegraph: 12 February 2008: Free mobile music download service launched
- ^ "Vodafone's unlimited music plan". The Dominion Post. 12 September 2008. http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/623461. Retrieved 1 November 2011.
- ^ Sydney Morning Herald: 22 September 2008: Unlimited music for the price of a coffee
- ^ BBC News Beat: 25 September 2008: Walkman phone to take on Nokia
- ^ Easybourse: 13 November 2008: Sony Ericsson's PlayNow Plus Music Service Opens Friday In Sweden
- ^ Billboard: 8 January 2009: Omnifone, Gracenote Partner On Integrated Unlimited Music
- ^ CNET: 8 January 2009: Gracenote puts a star in your car
- ^ Daily Telegraph: 16 February 2009: Mobile World Congress: Omnifone to launch unlimited online music download service with ISPs
- ^ Trading Markets: 13 March 2009: Sony Ericsson launches PlayNow plus in Switzerland
- ^ Billboard: 2 April 2009: Hong Kong First To Get New Omnifone Unlimited Service
- ^ Crave.com: 23 April 2009: Sony Ericsson announces PlayNow plus in Singapore
- ^ Billboard: 9 June 2009: Austria Gets Unlimited Sony Ericsson Service
- ^ Engadget: 11 September 2009: T-Mobile, Sony Ericsson bring PlayNow Plus to Netherlands
- ^ HWSW.hu: 14 October 2009: Korlátlan zeneletöltés mobilra - itt a PlayNow plus
- ^ Forrester: 12 October 2009: Sky Songs: First Take
- ^ 12 December 2009: Aliado Digital: Brasil: Sony Ericsson lanza PlayNow Plus
- ^ 20 March 2010: Seusers.com: Pasos para poner PlayNow plus
- ^ 20 November 2009: Trading Markets: T-Mobile introduces Sony Ericsson PlayNow Plus in Croatia
- ^ 21 November 2009: OCWorkBench: M1 and Sony Ericsson today announce the launch of Sony Ericsson Yari™ with PlayNow™ plus from 21 Nov
- ^ Music Week: 8 January 2010: Omnifone and Gracenote extend deal
- ^ The Guardian: 25 January 2010: HP deal strengthens Omnifone's position in digital music battle
- ^ Music Week: 15 February 2010: MusicStation comes to Android
- ^ Music Week: 16 February 2010: Dolby and Omnifone launch new format for the cloud
- ^ Reuters: 16 April 2010: Omnifone appoints new CEO for U.S. expansion
- ^ Engadget: 22 December 2010: Sony's Music Unlimited subscription service ready to stream tunes to PS3s and Bravia TVs in the UK
- ^ Tech Crunch: 22 January 2011: Sony’s cloud-based Qriocity music service debuts in France, Germany, Italy and Spain
- ^ Bloomberg: 17 February 2011: Sony Music Streaming Service Debuts in U.S. to Challenge iTunes
- ^ Wired: 25 August 2011: BlackBerry Messenger adds streaming music service
- ^ Ernst & Young UK Entrepreneur of the Year London & South Award winners press release
- ^ Oracle UK Partner Awards 2009 press release
- ^ CNET: ‘Best of CES’ Car Tech Award 2009 – with Gracenote
- ^ 3G.co.uk Omnifone wins Global Mobile Awards 2008 – Best Mobile Music Service Award
- ^ Mobile: 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
- ^ PwC UK Technology, Innovation & Growth Awards 2008 Entrepreneur of the Year – Rob Lewis, CEO, Omnifone
- ^ Oracle Magazine Editor’s Choice Awards 2008 Embedded Architect of the Year – Phil Sant, COO and Mark Knight, Chief Architect, Omnifone
- ^ Mediatech 100 2008
- ^ MCA (Mobile Content Awards) 2008: Silver Award: Best entertainment service
- ^ MAMA (Mobile Advertising & Marketing Awards) 2008: Gold Award: Most Effective Use of Music
- ^ AO (Always On) Global 250 2008
- ^ Red Herring 100 2007 – EMEA Award 2007
- ^ Red Herring 100 2007 – Global Award 2007
- ^ The Guardian: 12 February 2007: UK dotcom tycoons take on Apple with iPhone competitor
- ^ Vodafone: 10 September 2007: Vodafone brings unlimited downloads to the UK with MusicStation
External links
Categories:- Digital audio
- Entertainment companies of the United Kingdom
- Companies based in London
- Software companies of the United Kingdom
- Companies established in 2003
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
