DRM Free Monthly Music from Verizon & Rhapsody for $14.99 mo.

By Editor Wireless and Mobile News on June 30, 2008 12:04 PM

Verizon Wireless and Rhapsody, the digital music service from RealNetworks and MTV Networks, launch V CAST Music with Rhapsody. Combining Verizon Wireless' over-the-air mobile music service with Rhapsody's desktop solution, V CAST Music with Rhapsody delivers unlimited monthly access to music on up to three Rhapsody-compatible mobile phones and players and online on multiple PCs and seb browsers

Customers who purchase music over-the-air are able to download the master copy of the songs or albums to their PCs free of digital rights management (DRM) software that restricts how and where music can be played.

When customers download the V CAST Music with Rhapsody Software to their PCs and sign up for the monthly subscription, they have the ultimate music management service, including:

Unlimited subscription syncing with access to more than 5 million songs
Creating and accessing playlists, viewing playlists of other users, including celebrities
Burning, importing and converting CDs to play anywhere
Managing an existing digital music collection for free and syncing it to their mobile phones
Buying non-protected MP3s of songs on the PC for 99 cents per song
Buying songs on the phone, over-the-air - get two copies of the song for just $1.99 (one is over-the-air, the second master copy is the file customers download onto their PCs)

Verizon Wireless customers who simply want to manage or buy music can download the V CAST Music with Rhapsody software for free at www.verizonwireless.com/music. Customers interested in a subscription may sign up for $14.99 monthly subscription

With V CAST Music with Rhapsody, Verizon Wireless customers are still able to purchase songs over-the-air within the V CAST coverage area for $1.99 and get two copies of the song: the first for their phones, the second for their PCs in the DRM-free MP3 format

While Verizon Wireless customers continue to have the ability to get their favorite music while on-the-go via full-song over-the-air downloads, ringtones and ringback tones, V CAST Music with Rhapsody also provides them with an award-winning desktop music application, allowing them to sync their favorite music quickly and easily, directly to their mobile phones. Now music lovers will be able to manage their collections with the most comprehensive music management tool and take their music with them anywhere.

John Harrobin, senior vice president of digital media and marketing for Verizon, said, "V CAST Music with Rhapsody fulfills Verizon's promise to deliver the best mobile experience to our customers. Now, music fans can not only get the benefit of immediate access to music over-the-air, but also - through our partnership with Rhapsody - they can connect their mobile music and devices they carry with them everyday with the ultimate desktop experience."

Rob Williams, senior vice president of music products for RealNetworks, noted, "Working with Verizon Wireless, we are able to extend the reach of the award-winning Rhapsody service to millions of mobile phones. V CAST Music with Rhapsody gives mobile phone users the best experience of any music service on the market while also giving them access to unlimited music, whether at home or on-the-go."