Interactive Business

Polish internet portal Onet has teamed up with wi-fi community Fon to build hotspots and develop products and services for wireless subscribers. The two companies will work together under the brand Onet Fon.

Under the partnership agreement, Onet will build hotspots in Poland and promote Onet Fon routers in its upcoming DSL offering so that Onet subscribers automatically become Fon members and are able to surf for free on all Fon community access points.

Source link: dmeurope.com...

Online music will boost overall music sales, but not until 2010, predicts Screen Digest, a market research firm.

According to Screen Digest's 'Online Music in Europe: Market Assessment and Forecast,' the total European market for online music will have more than doubled from €121m in 2005 to a forecast €280m by the end of this year. By 2010 consumer spending on online music in Europe will generate more than €1.1 bln. Increases in broadband penetration and portable music player usage are responsible for this growth, says Screen Digest.

The overall European music market, however, is currently in decline – losing 22 per cent of its total value since 2001. Screen Digest predicts the market will continue to fall until 2010, at which point online music sales of more than €1 bln / year will begin to offset the decline in physical sales.

Screen Digest opines that piracy cannot be solely to blame for the decline in the overall music market. Evidence suggests that piracy is declining – the number of tracks available on illegal file sharing networks declined from 1.1bn in 2003 to 885m in 2005. Screen Digest says the true culprits are factors like the gradual erosion of music-dedicated shelf space in big retail stores - like HMV and Virgin - and its replacement with DVDs, books and mobile phones.

Source link: dmeurope.com...

Music lovers will soon be able to download music files legally for free using the ad-supported website Spiral Frog.

Spiral Frog sees its site as an attractive alternative to pirated music sites, as customers will be able to download music legally without worrying about viruses or spyware. As a further challenge to piracy, all audio and video content on Spiral Frog's website has built-in digital rights management technology.

The site is expected to launch in December 2006.

Source link: dmeurope.com...