Well, well, well, Microsoft's trying to muscle into the portable music business by striking a deal with Nokia. Microsoft, which almost missed the coming of the of the Web and the search engine phenomena, is betting it can become a key player in the mobile music game as 3G networks start to flex their power.
Nokia unveiled a new smart phone today that has an integrated music player and stereo output, and it is working with Microsoft to transfer music between mobile devices and PCs.Music on the move seems like a natural move for device makers given cheaper memory makes it a no-brainer. With MP3 players getting smaller, a cool wireless device with a built-in MP3 player would find a big audience.
This does not mean, however, people are going to download music using a wireless connection. It will likely be many years before you hear a song on the radio and impulsively want to buy it online. One of the big hurdles is the music and wireless industry are hell-bent on making juicy margins from a wireless music service. While this makes sense economically, consumers will balk at paying a premium for convenience. Music isn't like ringtones because they don't have the same sense of personalization.