Nokia phones 'Come with Music'

By Leigh-Ann Francis for Nokia

Johannesburg, 02 Sep 2009

Nokia SA has unveiled its 'Come with Music' service, which offers users a year of unlimited access to the Nokia online music store catalogue. The service will allow the user to effectively download over five million digital tracks, for free.

The new service marks Nokia's transition from being a device manufacturer to an Internet company, and in so doing, transforms the way in which people consume music, says Jake Larsen, Nokia's head of music for Middle East and Africa. “People want to consume music whenever and wherever they are. They want music now.”

While the benefits for the consumer are obvious, the service also benefits the artist and record labels, according to Nokia. At a time when almost 95% of music downloads are pirated, artists and record labels are continually looking for alternative ways to share their music legally with fans, notes the company.

Larson says the service provides a platform for niche artists, as removing the financial barrier means users tend to explore different music genres a lot more. “On average users browse and download three different genres of music from priced catalogues; the 'Comes with Music' user, however, browses seven genres of music,” explains Larsen.

To this end, “the service will widen the range of music consumed, as people aren't restricted by the cost of an album or track,” he continues.

Comes with Music is also locally relevant, says Nokia, as it is partnering with record labels to offer music by local artists.

Once the year's free subscription is up, users will revert back to the pricing model. However, all the music downloaded during the year can be kept by the user on both their Nokia music phone, as well as a dedicated PC. The service is available with Nokia's XpressMusic range of devices.