Mobile-phone giant Nokia has taken a major step into the music business today, with the company announcing a new service that will allow customers to download an unlimited number of music tracks for free during the year after they purchase select phones.
Three of the largest record labels in the world - Sony, Warner and Universal - have signed on to the service. Dubbed "Comes with Music," the new offering allows users to download any song in the catalog to their phone and their PC, and enables them to migrate the music onto a new Nokia phone up to three times within the subscription period. Unlike similar offerings from Rhapsody and Napster, however, users will be able to keep the music they have downloaded after the one-year subscription period ends.
The cost of the service will essentially absorbed in the initial purchase price of the phone, but Nokia isn't disclosing any pricing details yet. Comes with Music will launch next month in the U.K. followed by a roll out next year in other countries such as France, Germany, Italy, and Spain - U.S. users will apparently have to wait a while.