London – European mobile
network operator Vodafone (NASD: VOD) has attracted nearly 450,000 customers to its music
subscription services, including 100,000 in December alone, and now claims the
largest base of paying music subscribers in Europe.
The company signed DRM-free deals with all four major record labels during 2009,
and currently offers a catalog of over 2 million tracks.
The Vodafone service
plans include unlimited streaming, and monthly 10-download song bundles.
"We
are really excited by our customers’ reaction to these great music
offers," said Lee Epting, director of content at Vodafone Internet
Services.
"We expect to see continued growth in our music service
subscriptions driven by the increase in smartphone use, with their worry-free
data tariffs and great value add-ons such as music bundles."
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Vodafone appear to have stumbled upon a model that works, judging by the high level of subscriptions they have had already. However only time will really tell if this is a viable business model for them to work with and whether other companies can create one to equal success.