Nokia's music store opens in Oz: can they turn it up to 11?

Alex Zaharov-Reutt
Tuesday, 22 April 2008 08:26

Opinion and Analysis

Aiming to impress, Nokia’s new mobile and PC Music Store has finally opened its virtual doors, challenge the iTunes behemoth with three of the four major labels, many smaller ones, some exclusives, and an Aussie rock legend in the opening set.

Nokia’s Australian Music Store is finally open, giving Nokia – and PC owners – the ability to download from a song catalogue of millions, featuring global hits and local artists galore.

Owners of a Nokia N95, N95 8GB, N81 8GB and N82 can access the music store directly from their phones, 24/7, giving Nokia as much wider selection of devices that offer ‘over the air’ music downloads than Apple.

Owners of other non N-Series phones that come with a music player, such as the Xpress Music models, like the Nokia 5610 and 5310, can’t access the music store from their phones, but they can use their PCs to access Nokia’s store, download music there, and then synchronise them to their phones, just as happens with most iPods on the market today.

To kick things off with a bang, Nokia has chosen to celebrating the Australian store launch with “an exclusive live album from leading independent and ARIA awarding winning group, The John Butler Trio”.

Only recorded in March 2008, the live performance provides “a unique insight into this popular local act”, and is “available only from the Nokia Music Store”.

Nokia doesn’t say how long this performance will remain a Nokia Music Store exclusive, presumably the John Butler Trio will want wider distribution eventually. But it does show that Nokia’s clout in the phone world is definitely important and that music labels are taking Nokia’s music dance moves seriously.

No doubt we’ll see more exclusives in the future, as digital giants fight it out for content supremacy – really, the fight has only just begun, and with Nokia’s entry, is starting to get a lot more exciting.

Please read onto page 2 to see what other exclusives Nokia has lined up for now, which local Aussie rock legend has become a Nokia ‘music recommender’, and what Nokia has to say now that the store has opened. CONTINUED