Calling all music fans

So I’m becoming more and more convinced that the future of the music industry rests in the hands of wireless.
I know, I know, it’s a bold prediction, but before you roll your eyes and dismiss me as a slack-jawed cheerleader for wireless, let me explain.
First off, I think it’s clear that listening to music is now primarily a mobile activity. With the advent of the Walkman, music lovers were untethered from their car stereos and could roam as far as they pleased, at least with the three or four cassette tapes they were willing to carry. Then portable CD players came along and everyone managed to scratch up their CDs just fine, thank you, while hauling them all over the place.
Then, finally, digital music players hit the scene, and suddenly users could have instant access to hundreds of hours of music without ever pushing a button. Music was on the move, and bikers, hikers and just about everyone else rejoiced.
Now here’s where it gets interesting: Cellphones can play digital music. Granted, it may take several years for cellphones to replace digital music players, but thanks to the rapidly dropping cost of Flash memory I think it’s ultimately inevitable. After all, most everyone needs a cellphone, so why not get one that plays music and save the extra $100 or so you would have spent on a stand-alone digital music player?
But the key thing here is that cellphones can both play digital music and access a data network. This combination can foster a wide range of music applications.
For example, Melodeo has a new application called nuTsie, which streams an iTunes playlist to a cellphone. All that’s required is an iTunes playlist file; NuTsie stores a huge array of songs on its servers and will simply stream what’s on your list to you.
Now, imagine if this application had a sharing component? Imagine if your friends could share their music with you, whenever and wherever they were? And wouldn’t it be cool if, while you were listening to your friend’s playlist, you had the option to buy the tracks you liked?
I guess my point is that cellphones can open up a world of new music to those who are interested. And the proliferation of music can only help the music industry; after all, the best way to get people to pay for a particular song or album is to let them hear how good it is.