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July 30, 2008

WSJ: Dell to Debut New Wi-Fi Digital Music Player

By Michelle Robart, TMCnet Editor

Reported today by The Wall Street Journal is that for the past few months, Dell (News - Alert) has been testing a new digital music player that may hit shelves as early as September. The story also states the music player will be more affordable and may sell for less than $100.



 
This attractive pricing could stir up competition between Dell and Apple (News - Alert). Apple’s most wallet-friendly iPod is currently priced at $149 and holds 4GB of storage, or up to 1,000 songs.
                   
Dell’s new music player will use Wi-Fi to connect to third-party music services.
 
This announcement to join the music biz is not the first for Dell. In 2003, the company entered the music industry with its own player, but three years later, it jumped out, with around a 3 percent share of the market. It was one of numerous disappointing and ultimately abandoned consumer efforts, including forays into televisions and handheld computing devices.
 
While it's hard to imagine Dell posing a real threat to the iPod's more than 70-percent share of the digital music player market, never say never. The software behind Dell’s music device came from Zing, a small company Dell acquired a year ago, according to the Wall Street Journal. Dell's music software could also come pre-installed on new Dell PCs.
 
Here is an excerpt from the story:
 
Software would connect the device to an online subscription service that Dell expects to launch in the coming months. Through licensing agreements with online music providers, Dell's new service will allow consumers to download songs and move them between devices like PCs and cell phones. Even though the device Dell is currently testing will be focused on playing music, Dell's new service will also enable movies to be downloaded and displayed on PCs. Pricing for the new service hasn't been determined.
 
Of course there are plenty of potential partners for Dell. The company already has connections to music services from Pandora (News - Alert) and Rhapsody. In addition, MySpace Music, a major music service that's expected to launch in September with music from at least three of the four major record labels, could also be a major partner.
 
Then again, Dell could decide to do nothing at all. However, it’s hard to picture Dell or any other PC maker sitting on the sidelines forever, as Apple becomes more and more established in home entertainment.
 
Michelle Robart is a Contributing Editor at TMCnet. To read more of her articles please visit her columnist page.
 







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