Napster and AT&T team up for mobile downloads

AT&T subscribers have been waiting a long time for this. Over the past year or so, they’ve had to watch enviously as their peers who have Verizon and Sprint were able to download full songs right to their phones. Everyone knew it was coming. After all, how long could the nation’s largest carrier delay? The wait is over, though, as AT&T and Napster are working together on the carrier’s mobile music program. Now you can get tracks from Napster’s 4 million-song library right on your phone. A quick reaction might be that AT&T is a bit too late to this party. Not so, says Mark Collins, head of consumer data service for AT&T.

AT&T doesn’t believe it’s at a disadvantage because it follows its rivals. ” Absolutely not,” Collins said when asked about whether AT&T was late to the game in this area. “This has been a nascent market that’s just starting to gain momentum. We think we’re entering it at just the right time.”

The idea is that Sprint and Verizon primed the market, and now AT&T can enter with less tumult. Or so goes the theory. They still have the most subscribers of any American provider, so the late entry apparently hasn’t hurt them too badly. The pricing will be along the same lines as Verizon: $1.99 per song, $7.49 for a block of five. Sprint still has the advantage here, as they offer songs at just 99 cents. Too bad that hasn’t helped them move up from the No. 3 carrier in America. Of course, you could always just buy a software package and USB cable that allow you to transfer music from your PC to your phone. But where’s the impulse in that? [CNN Money]]]>