New Stereo Linked to Online Music Store
Tuesday October 21, 12:41 pm ET
By Kenji Hall, Associated Press Writer
Japan Electronics Makers Unveil System That Can Download Song Files From Online Store
TOKYO (AP) -- Four Japanese electronics makers have teamed up to make stereo systems that can download music directly from an Internet service, without a home computer serving as middle man.
Sony Corp., Sharp Corp., Pioneer Corp. and Kenwood Corp. unveiled prototypes of the new equipment Tuesday and said they expect the systems to go on sale early next year. There are no plans yet for marketing it overseas, the companies said.
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Each company owns one-fourth of a joint venture, Any Music Planning Inc., that developed the Linux-based stereo equipment in an attempt to adapt to rapid changes engulfing the music industry.
Sony, Sharp, Pioneer and Kenwood plan to sell versions of the music receivers under their own brands. The prototypes shown Tuesday resemble traditional stereo components, but have a liquid crystal display and Ethernet ports for broadband Internet connectivity.
The systems are automatically set to access a Web site run by LabelGate, a Japanese online music shop that opened in August. LabelGate has music licensing rights with some of Japan's biggest recording companies and offers a limited amount of Western music.
Users will be able to browse, download, store and play song files, record them on a mini-disc or transfer them to other digital music devices, said Any Music CEO Fujio Noguchi.
Any Music plans to focus first on the Japanese market, but "ultimately, our dream is to make the service a worldwide standard," Noguchi said. In fact, four other Japanese audiovisual equipment makers -- NEC Electronics, Denon, Yamaha and Onkyo -- are also developing similar products.
Some consumer electronics companies have introduced so-called media receivers in the United States that can stream music from the Internet as well as play music files that are stored on networked computers. The model of purchasing music online via a standalone stereo component, however, is so far foreign to the U.S. market.
Details remain sketchy about how Any Music's system will work. It's unclear whether Any Music's hardware will restrict the number of times that users can copy songs, as U.S.-based services such as iTunes and MusicMatch do.
Also, executives from the companies refused to say how much the systems would cost, and said LabelGate hasn't decided how much it will charge per downloaded song.
The service will be separate from the one LabelGate offers to computer users. Currently, LabelGate charges 210 yen ($1.90) per downloaded song.
The electronics makers are betting that as broadband Internet connections spread in Japan, they can attract consumers who prefer downloading music to a trip to the music store. They hope Internet-savvy youngsters and adult music aficionados alike will be drawn to the prospect of convenience.
"Our industry is in crisis," said Moriyuki Okada, who heads Sharp's audiovisual systems department. "We want to emerge from that by offering new business ideas."
