Leap jumps into full-track fray with Cricket Mobile Music service: Low-cost wireless provider expands mobile entertainment offerings

Leap Wireless International Inc. is bringing music to the masses, or at least those wireless consumers packing its Cricket devices.
Despite the languid adoption of full-track mobile music download services, the no-contract carrier jumped into the mobile music field today with its Cricket Mobile Music service powered by LiveWire Mobile.
The offering allows users to purchase full-track songs from their handsets for $1.99 or receive credit for three downloads for a $5 monthly charge. Per-track download costs are deducted from customers’ Flex Bucket accounts. Customers can also download (and then sideload to their phone) tracks via their computer through the Cricket Web site for 99 cents per song, or download two copies of a song, one for their computer and one for their handset, for $2.25 per song.
Leap said the over-the-air service is available on devices including Motorola Inc.’s Rokr, Slvr, Krzr and Razr2 as well as Samsung Electronic Co. Ltd.’s JetSet, r610 and r500.
The new full-track offering joins the carrier’s downloadable ringtone and ringback tone service.
LiveWire has scored a number of carrier deals; it powers Virgin Mobile USA Inc.’s ringback tone service and through its $14.5 million acquisition of Groove Mobile last year runs offerings from Sprint Nextel Corp., 3 U.K. and Bell Mobility in Canada.