Orange Combines Over-The-Air Music Downloads With Web Access for Ultimate Music Experience

20th October 2005, London Orange today announced the launch of the UK’s first web integrated mobile music download service. The service allows management, storage and preview of tracks from the Orange Music catalogue, and enables the transfer of digital music (e.g. MP3) from PCs to Orange phones. The new music service, available on 1st November, is being launched across the Orange range of 11 ‘great for music’ handsets including three 3G handsets for super fast download, all of which are priced from £free on contract.

New features include online preview, purchase and playlist management; phone synch and track converter for conversion of digital music and transfer to your Orange phone
Orange backs up all your tracks downloaded ensuring music stays with you even if you upgrade, or lose your handset
Over the air full track music downloads from just £1.00* from Orange Music Player

“Further to Strategy Analytics’ wireless benchmark survey, which placed Music Player as the best in class service in the UK, we have taken feedback from all areas to enhance our service even further,” said Mark Ashford, head of music, Orange UK. “We have listened to critics and consumers alike and introduced web based previewing, storing, managing and purchasing of music. The new Music Player features are a huge leap forward in mobile music delivery and web integration, and demonstrate our commitment to pushing the boundaries of mobile music experience. We want to demonstrate a total music experience for our customers. You have to ask the question, why buy a separate music device this Christmas, when everything you need is on an Orange phone?”

Manage tracks online

Music Player is accompanied by Music Player Manager, a web based companion that synchronises with the Orange phone, allowing users to manage music files and create personal playlists online before transferring them to their mobile. Orange customers can also use Music Player Manager to access, preview and purchase music online from the 300,000 tracks available. (Increasing to half a million tracks available by Christmas).

The new service also allows for complete track back-up, ensuring their purchased tracks and playlists can be retrieved should their handset be upgraded, lost or stolen. Users can log onto Music Player Manager at: Orange Music

Convert digital music from your PC

The new Music Player also features Track Converter, an application which users can download to their PC. Track Converter enables Music Player users to convert MP3, WMA and WAV files into the mobile format (aac Plus) and upload to the handset, whilst complying with anti-piracy digital rights management regulations.

Great for music handset range

The full range of 11 handsets include both 3G and 2.5G handsets. On November 1st the music hero handset, the SPV C550, will launch with a stereo jack for connectivity to standard headphones and a stereo cable, allowing users to plug into a home stereo. Dedicated music hard-keys give direct access to music and playlists and allow users to play, pause, skip forward and skip back at the touch of a button.

The handset, which runs on the Windows Mobile operating system, also features one of the best speakerphones found on any mobile. The SPV C550 boasts 64MB of internal memory with an additional 512MB Mini SD card providing enough combined capacity to store approximately 700 tracks.

Customers wishing to store more music can either buy a larger memory card from an Orange store, or use Music Player Manager to swap tracks to and from the phone.

Customers with ‘great for music’ handsets can download the new Music Player for free from Orange World and as part of the Orange TRY before you buy offer will be able to download 5 tracks free.** Music Player is available to both contract and Pay-As-You-Go customers from 1st November 2005, with users paying £3.00 for three tracks.*

Great for music handsets compatible with Music Player 2.1:

2.5G handsets: