LONDON-Traditional GSM device manufacturers, including Nokia Corp. and Motorola Inc., are leading the charge in music-focused cellular devices, or “Cellular Music Decks,” according to new research from Strategy Analytics.
“Music will be a ‘bridesmaid’ value-add mostly found on converged devices and high-end camera phones until 3G services are more widely deployed,” explained Chris Ambrosio, director of the wireless devices strategies service at Strategy Analytics. “Then, it is up to device vendors to make significant improvements in sound quality reproduction, storage capacity, wireless-fixed connectivity, and the user interface to make cellular music a broader reality.”
The group’s “Music Enabled Handsets-Next 3G Device Focus” report predicts music-enabled device sales will make up 54 percent of global handset sales in 2009It also concludes that GSM players are leading the way in developing such devices, outpacing Asian competitors that are more focused on imaging capabilities for devices.
Strategy Analytics points to Nokia’s 3300 and 5510 music-enabled handsets and Motorola’s music-focused alliances with partners MTV and Apple.
“Music has strong emotive value which rivals that of imaging,” said Strategy Analytics analyst Eddie Tapiero. “As we move towards broad-based music download services, vendors must walk the thin line between engaging ‘Sporadic Downloaders’ with engaging feature sets while simultaneously limiting carrier exposure to expensive customer support requirements.”
