Specially designed PDA downloads music via mobile phone
No longer will anyone on the move have to depend on the radio to hear the latest hits. The newly developed DRM Music Player (DMP) is a PDA whose sole function is to download and play music easily via mobile phones. A GPRS cell phone is connected to the DMP by cable or by infrared, and the connection to the mobile service provider is established at the touch of a button. The DMP then displays the music titles on offer. It is possible to listen to extracts and save the music onto the player if desired.
Manufactured by Siemens Information and Communications Mobile, the DRM measures 52- by 98- by 21-mm and weighs just 80 g.
Music files can also be easily transferred from the computer to the DRM via a USB interface. The files are stored on a plug-in 64-MB SD memory card, which holds up to 60 songs at a time. The card can be used both in the DRM Music Player and in the PC.
Audio files are compressed using MPEG-4 aacPlus. This is the world's most powerful audio compression technology, claims Siemens, delivering high audio quality even for the narrowband transmission channels used in mobile communications. The highly efficient aacPlus is a crucial factor in the technical and economic feasibility of mobile music services and is already being successfully used to transmit music. Since spring 2003, aacPlus has been used as a High Efficiency AAC Profile component in the ISO/MPEG-4 standard.
To ensure that copyright is not infringed, it is not possible to create pirate copies, thanks to Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology from Basle-based company SDC AG, which patented this DRM solution in the US and in Europe in 1996. SDC Java DRM technology is in use in both the Internet and, with the introduction of the O2 Music service, now in the mobile market. It safeguards the licensing rights of music companies and singers; prevents the titles made exclusively available by the music companies from being copied without protection from the customer's PC or DMP to other devices; and stops music files being transferred and played illegally on PCs.
The DRM Music Player, which works with all major makes of cell phone, is known as a "White Label Device." This means mobile providers can launch the Player as their own product and under their own brand. What's more, the DMP can be sold both with new cell phones and as an accessory to the installed base. At the same time, mobile operators can make effective use of the powerful GPRS technology and move contents, which will be available in an even more comprehensive form with the subsequent introduction of UMTS.
In-depth negotiations are underway with several mobile providers in the US, South America, and Europe.
For more information, visit www.siemens-mobile.com.
Click here to enlarge image
The DRM Music Player (DMP) is a PDA developed to download and play music easily via mobile phones.
