Wireless music system maker Sonos has teamed up with online music store Napster in a deal that will make music downloads a thing of the past.
Included in the latest Sonos software update, the new Napster deal lets you stream its entire library of some five million tracks around your home.
The ultimate record collection
Track selection is controlled by a portable unit, effectively a mini remote control. You use this to create playlists, browse albums, tracks and artists and tune in to internet radio stations. The Sonos/Napster deal basically means that you never have to download tracks again as you can stream them at your leisure.
Sonos has long been at the forefront of digital music systems. It's effectively a "Wi-Fi hi-fi", streaming digital music from a PC/Mac to ZonePlayer systems around the house.
"Though the price point of a typical Sonos setup will put it out of the reach of most music listeners, the tie up with Napster is both interesting and important," suggests Jupiter Research analyst Mark Mulligan
"The link up between the two companies gives Napster a mass-market usage scenario that it has previously lacked," he adds on his blog. "Getting digital music into the living room is the next big new frontier facing digital music."
