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US software giant Microsoft is aiming to get its audio and
video software into mobile phones before it is beaten to the
650-million-handsets-a-year market by rivals like Apple.
Microsoft has quietly made preparations to make its media
software available to chip and handset makers, enabling consumers
to play music they have saved in the Windows Media format
on their PCs to their handsets.
"We've been hush-hush about it, so far. But we understand
this is a major market opportunity," Erik Huggers, director
of Windows Digital Media division, told Reuters in an interview
on the fringes of the annual International Broadcasting Conference.
With Microsoft's media technology built into cell phones,
consumers could buy music at Internet stores which use Microsoft's
Windows Media format to encrypt and protect tracks.
"The sales numbers (of mobile phones) are staggering.
It's obvious that it's our goal to sign up all major handset
makers," Huggers said.
Analysts have said that handsets will eventually put the
dedicated portable music players out of business, because
bigger memory means consumers can store their music on their
phone.
US-based Motorola and Japan's NEC have Microsoft's media
decoders integrated into their handsets for third-generation
mobile networks, which is still a very small market. Microsoft
is now looking at the entire market, and specifically at market
leader Nokia from Finland, Germany's Siemens and Japanese-Swedish
Sony Ericsson.
Microsoft will battle with Apple, which last month signed
up Motorola to build in new cell phones a slimmed down version
of the music player and piracy protection used in the iPod.
Apple's Frank Casanova, senior director of product marketing
at Interactive Media Group, declined to say if his company
was aiming for similar deals with other handset vendors.
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