News release
London - 18 October 2005
In a move that sees the battle for the digital music market hot up further, mobile media company 3 today announced that every audio track its customers download to mobile handsets will also be available online for no extra charge.
Until now, customers buying tracks on their mobiles have not been able to access their music on other devices.
On 3's new music service, called dual download - customers who buy their music over the air will not only get their track delivered to their handset, but will be able to get a copy of their track online. They can then play it on their laptop or PC, transfer it onto an MP3 player, or burn it onto a CD.
3 believe that offering dual downloading as standard will provide an additional incentive to encourage consumers to buy more of their digital music over mobile. The latest figures from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) show that the digital music market has now overtaken the value of the global singles market, and recent research from Forrester predicts the revenue from digital music sales in the UK will top 204m euros by 2007*.
Forrester research also points to the importance of music portability for consumers - as the majority of people (53%) who download music to their PC then burn it onto a CD to play elsewhere.
Gareth Jones, 3's Chief Operating Officer, said: "Until now, a track downloaded onto mobile hasn't been yours to enjoy on other devices. We are launching a service that lets the customers decide how they want to listen to their music."
"Backed by the UK's most extensive 3G coverage, 3 has turned 86% of the country into a virtual music shop. Now, we not only offer the convenience of buying music wherever and whenever you want, but also the ability to integrate your mobile music library with the rest of your collection."
3's music service will sell tracks at a flat rate of £1.50, with each track available on both mobiles and also as a PC download. Customers buying a track over the air will automatically be sent a text message with a PIN code to access the same track as a PC download.
Jon Davis, Director of New Media at Sony BMG, said: 'Over the last eighteen months, via 3, music on your mobile has morphed into rich music content propositions such as video, audio downloads, live m-casts and now, dual downloads. The results over the last year have been phenomenal so we're extremely excited about the prospect of dual downloads. We're confident that this additional value will drive the sales of digital downloads via mobile phones.'
3's new music service was unveiled at a press briefing which saw 3 outline its plans to bring the latest in information, entertainment and communications to over 3.2million customers.
At the event, 3 also announced a series of mobile video premieres over the coming months. These include the first track from Madonna's new 'Confessions on a Dancefloor' album, the next track from The Pussycat Dolls, and James Blunt's Christmas single.
Mercury nominated band Hard-Fi, are working with 3 to produce the first made-for-mobile music video for their track 'Cash machine'.
3's dual download service has been developed in conjunction with Musiwave. Handset limitations may apply to audio track downloads.
Notes to editors
*Forrester - Mobile music needs a tune-up. September 2005
About 3
3 is a mobile media company delivering a convergence of communications, entertainment and information to customers on the move.
The three areas which form the core of its business are:
* Communications - including all forms of personal communications, voice and video calling; text, picture and video messaging; and mobile blogging
* Entertainment - including television, music audio and video, computer games, and media publishing
* Information services - including wireless web, access to the best of the internet and a range of news and other information services
3 services are available from sister companies in Australia, Austria, Denmark, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy and Sweden. 3 also holds UMTS licences in Indonesia and Norway.
For further information, please visit: www.three.co.uk or call the 3 Media Office on +44 (0)20 7350 5696.
Three facts about 3:
* 3, a mobile media company, launched the UK's first 3G network
* 3 currently has over 3.2million customers in the UK and over 10million worldwide
* The 3 network offers national coverage for calls and texts, and over 86% population coverage for 3G services
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