Groove Mobile is going directly to consumers with a new track from indie hip-hop artist Aceyalone.
Users can send a message to a short code to receive a link enabling them to access the tune via the wireless Web. The song, “Can’t Hold Back,” will sell for $2 following the close of CTIA I.T.
The move marks the first time U.S. consumers can buy a mobile song download away from carrier decks, according to Groove, and appears to be the first step in a larger effort to provide an off-deck alternative to carriers’ mobile music services.
“This cross-carrier solution allows artists to get their music to as wide an audience as possible, while providing consumers with an incredibly easy-to-use interface,” said Groove CMO Adam Sexton. “By simply sending a text message, consumers can now buy the latest tracks from The Orchard, and download them directly to their mobile phones.”
Groove powers mobile music services for Sprint Nextel Corp., the U.K. operator 3 and other carriers in North America and Europe. And the company last year launched an off-deck, full-track download service in Europe.
The effort is an opening salvo in the struggle to provide an alternative to carrier-branded mobile music services that have failed to find an audience. Nokia Corp. is looking to join the playground with a full-track service under its new Ovi brand, and LaNetro Zed’s Monstermob group has begun offering off-deck tunes in Europe. Meanwhile, some artists are beginning to target music lovers directly, circumventing music labels.
Whether a viable business model exists in the full-track world is still uncertain, however. Carrier-branded efforts by Verizon Wireless and Sprint have fallen flat, and AT&T Mobility only recently added over-the-air to its service. The industry has struggled to find a price that rewards every player in the value chain, but still appeals to consumers.
But while Apple seems to have set the standard price with its 99-cent songs, Sexton said digital music will likely evolve to the point where distributors charge different prices for different songs-or the devices that will be used to play them.
“Does it really make sense that a Jerry Lee Lewis song that was a b-side of a single (decades ago) is the same price as a new Eminem track that just hit yesterday?” Sexton asked. “I’m a big believer in exclusive content, in bundled content. There will be different price points for different songs.”
