Word is out that Nokia is planning to consolidate its confused music offerings into one place. Dubbed Ovi Music, Espoo is yet to give it the official nod and before it does, here’s our breakdown of what this next-generation music service needs to do in order to come out on top.
Streaming on desktop and phone
If Ovi Music is to be a coming together of everything from Nokia Music to Comes With Music, then it needs to do more than one thing well. That means as well as a download store, it must do streaming on your desktop and your phone. Nokia has been a leader in bringing music to your mobile, so this would give it an edge on its cellular rivals at least.
No more DRM
Essential. DRM is yesterday’s news and using it is an archaic way to clamp down on piracy. That doesn’t just go for any Ovi Music download store, but also for whatever Nokia decides to do with Comes With Music. If it’s co-opted into a wider Ovi Music offering, the all you can eat streaming service must ditch copyright control. With such low take up figures, Nokia needs to do all it can to get people using CWM.
Gig tickets up for grabs
Buying gig tickets from your phone via Ovi Music makes perfect sense and would be a killer way for Nokia to get one over some of its big time competitors. Imagine listening to Ellie Goulding, tapping a button on your phone and getting one touch access to the critics’ darling’s show that night? Give Nokia your payment details when you sign up and there’s no need to faff with PayPal or debit card deets either.
One-touch access from the homescreen
Just as the iPhone can tap into iTunes from its homescreen, it’s imperative that Nokia intregrates Ovi Music into the front page of its all new blowers. Whether it’s with Symbian or MeeGo, access to the music service can’t be hidden behind a slew of fiddly menu screens.
FM tagging for buying songs stat
Listening to the radio on your Nok and want to buy that tune pronto? FM tagging would take care of that. Build it into Ovi Music and watch as sales go through the roof.
Social networking hook ups
Increasingly, punters want to tell the world and his wife what tracks they’re nodding their bonces too. Twitter and FaceBook need to be at the core of Ovi Music, in the same way Qualcomm’s FLO TV tweets work on smart-books. No flicking between apps to tell your mates about your love of She’s A Lady by Tom Jones, just doing it from one place.
What do you want from Ovi Music? Has Nokia left to late to compete with the big boys? Tell us what you think in the comments section now!
