Vodafone launches music streaming service in India
Vodafone Music offers a wide range of music content that subscribers can access on their WAP browsers or through an app, reports The Times of India. The platform has been designed by one of India's leading online entertainment platforms, Hungama Digital Music Entertainment, and offers features such as audio and video streaming, along with downloading, and an advanced search option.
The advanced version will offer features such as cloud sync, radio, playlist sharing, and predictive search. Except for cloud sync and the radio feature, if you ask me, this appears to be very similar to YouTube. YouTube already has playlists and predictive searches too, so why would Vodafone Music appeal then?
The main reason is the content which will be available from Hungama itself. Hungama has been one of the pioneers in making Indian content, specifically from Bollywood, available for mobile devices, and not just in India. Hungama already provides content for several telecom operators and portals in North America. They've come a long way from when I first became aware of their content, as more advanced features have been added over time. However, Hungama's advantage is that they have access to content, and it's legal too.
In the world of piracy, India unfortunately is one of those countries that leads the way. Little is done to combat online piracy, or even in the storefront, and as such, the industry losses every year. With Hungama providing a legal, online portal for content, they will in fact reach a wider audience, especially with 155 million Vodafone subscribers.