Thursday, Japanese conglomerate Sony Corp. (SNE) announced plans to introduce "Music Unlimited", a new, cloud-based, digital music service that will be available by the end of the year. At the IFA 2010 technology show in Berlin, Germany, the company said that its premium streaming video service, "Video On Demand", will be available this fall in five European countries.
The services, which has been widely considered as rival to Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) iTunes, was announced in tune with Apple that launched its latest product updates in its Apple fall 2010 event on Wednesday.
Sony said its services will be powered by Sony's network services platform Qriocity, which was announced in November 2009 as Sony Online Services, or SOLS. Qriocity has been offering video-on-demand in the US since April this year.
Sony's Qriocity connects many of its network-enabled devices and allows consumers to enjoy high quality entertainment across multiple devices. The company said it will deliver a variety of digital entertainment content and services, including video, music, game applications, and e-books over time.
The five European countries to get the 'Video On Demand' service include France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the U.K.
With the service, customers will get access to hundreds of movies from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, Lionsgate, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., NBC Universal International Television Distribution, Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, Disney (DIS), and Warner Bros. Digital Distribution.
Sony noted that many movies are available in High Definition, or HD, as well as Standard Definition, or SD. The video and music services will be available on Sony's 2010 models of network-enabled BRAVIA TVs and Blu-ray Disc players, and Blu-ray Home Theater systems. Apart from these, the cloud-based music service, which give users access to millions of songs, will also be available across PlayStation3 computer entertainment systems and VAIOs and other personal computers, and will become increasingly available on a range of Sony's portable devices.
Commenting on the new services, Kazuo Hirai, President of Networked Products & Services Group, Sony, said, "With access to a huge library of songs through the cloud, users can discover new music through channels personalized to their tastes on multiple devices and without the requirement to manage digital music files."
Previously in 2004, Sony launched an online music download service in the US, called Connect, but pulled the plug on it in 2007 due to lukewarm reception from consumers and software malfunctions.
As per reports, in Australia and New Zealand, Sony has been trialling another music service called bandit.fm that allows users to stream unlimited music for a fixed cost.
Incidentally, Apple announced its entry into the online social networking yesterday by introducing Ping, a music-oriented social network. It will be available in the company's latest version of the online music store, the iTunes 10. Apple also unveiled upgraded versions of its iPod lineup.
SNE closed Wednesday's regular trading session at $28.92, up $0.93 or 3.32%, on a volume of 751 thousand shares.
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