by Doug Allen on telecommagazine.com
In what may be a sign of things to come in the wireless operator space, Verizon Wireless has announced a new online music download service called V CAST Music, aimed at cell phone users. Available through Verizon’s online Media Store, it’s the first such telco-branded offering from a U.S. carrier since Sprint discontinued its own MP3-to-PC download service.
The service is also noteworthy because its MP3 song files are distributed free of Digital Rights Management restrictions that limit said files to a single player format or device. Once purchased, the MP3 can be played on or burned to any MP3-capable device, including their PC. This differentiates V CAST Music from other MP3 music services, and eliminates the need to convert MP3s to another format, typically WMA, when sideloading files to a handset, as is required under iTunes.
To enable this PC-based downloading model, music files are first sent to a PC to manage and store these tracks, instead of directly to the customers’ MP3 device; then Continue reading
