Once you’ve read the article below, make sure you enter the 20fourLabs Nokia Comes With Music competition (see bottom of page) to stand a chance of winning one of two Nokia XpressMusic devices (with unlimited music downloads for 12 months) or Nokia Music Store vouchers to the value of R2,500!

[UPDATE: Competition has now closed. See list of winners below]

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I attended the SA launch of Nokia Comes With Music a few months ago and have since been using a Nokia 5530 XpressMusic handset to test and experience the Nokia Music Store and their ‘eat-as-much-as-you-like music’ offering - Comes With Music - for myself.

There have been a few hiccups since the launch - mainly relating to the store not being compatible on Mac and Firefox - which are being addressed, but overall I’ve been very impressed with the huge amount of music available in the store, the relative ease of downloading music to your desktop player or Nokia device and having the freedom to discover new bands and music - legally.

I asked Jake Larsen (Head of Music, Nokia Middle East and Africa) how things have been going since the launch and to share some trends they’ve noticed. We also find about some of the exciting Nokia Music initiatives that have been happening recently.  Enjoy.

5 million songs, 4 Free, 4 Keeps

RB: The Nokia Music Store launched 7 months ago and Comes With Music launched 3 months ago in South Africa. What has the general response been by the local music industry and consumers?
Do they “get it” or are you still having to do a lot of educating?

JL: The Nokia Music Store has been a great success and Comes With Music is building on that achievement. Consumers naturally look for the catch when you tell them that they have unlimited access to music with no cost per download and are delighted when they find that there isn’t one when referring to Comes With Music. Key to our success is clearly communicating that Comes With Music offers completely unlimited access to the entire catalogue of more than five million songs on the Nokia Music Store for a full year and the fact that you can download as much as you like and all the music is yours to keep forever. The South African music industry has engaged favourably and recognise the potential of Comes With Music to revolutionise the way in which people access their products whilst at the same time increasing label and artist revenues and reach.

This is a website dedicated to explaining the proposition:   It features instructions and a video demonstration of Comes With Music. Also look out for the Comes With Music TV advert which is flighting throughout December.

RB: Are there any significant numbers or trends that you can share with our readers i.e. number of registrations or downloads, most popular artist/album/single?

JL: In the first few months of Comes With Music in South Africa the average user is downloading around three hundred songs. The increased consumption of back catalogue versus that of such purchases in the alacarte environment is encouraging as is the fact that people browse double the number of genres that they would in a pay per track or pay per album scenario. This demonstrates that the as long as the barrier to trial is removed - as is the case with Comes With Music - people are willing to leave their comfort zones and to explore new music. This is great as it gives us the opportunity to help people to discover lots of new music through our editorial features and recommendations.

The content being downloaded is a reflection of the multicultural country in which we live and is extremely varied, but there is always some content which stands out. The Black Eyed Peas single, I’ve Gotta Feeling, for example, has been very successful and has held the top spot in the singles download chart for more than 6 weeks in a row.

Comes With Music devices in SA - current and upcoming

RB: There are currently a handful of Comes With Music devices in South Africa. What are the key features that separate them from each other and are they each targeted at a unique type of mobile user?

JL: Comes With Music is currently available on the 5130, 5530 and 5630 devices, with the brand new X6 available from the middle of December 2009.

(brief summary of each phone:)

The Nokia 5130 - entry level device, 2GB SD card, exclusive to MTN at only R130 pm on contract.

Nokia 5530 - touch screen device, homescreen one touch shortcuts, 4GB memory card.

Nokia 5630 - ultra-slim S60 device, 4GB upgradable to 16GB microSD memory card, Nokia “Say & Play” feature.

Both the 5530 and the 5630 feature over the air music download capability from the Nokia Music Store via the Comes With Music functionality. Music on the 5130 is downloaded to a PC and sideloaded onto the device.

RB: Are there any new CWM devices coming to South Africa soon?

JL: The Nokia X6 Comes With Music is available in South Africa from mid December 2009 and is a powerful entertainment device capable of playing up to 35 hours of music, offering 32GB of on-board memory and supporting all main digital music formats, with a slick 3.2″ finger touch interface and a 5 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss lens.The ultimate device for social butterflies, the Nokia X6 has a 16:9 widescreen optimized for photos, videos and browsing. The Nokia X6 is a hive of activity that brings friends and virtual communities, like Facebook, to the homescreen, making it easy to socialize with friends and follow all the favorite blogs and celeb gossip.The entertainment experience is completed by embedded games and direct access from the homescreen to download more games and applications through the Ovi Store.

RB: How has the performance of the local Nokia Music store compared to other territories where competitors such as iTunes are more established?

JL: The Nokia Music Store has performed very well in South Africa. Consumers have reacted positively to the ease of use offered by the store and the Ovi Player, which allows simple drag and drop transfers to your phone. South African music fans trust the Nokia brand and the music services we offer as they are secure in the knowledge that all the players are being fairly compensated whilst providing the fan with easy access to all the music they want.

RB: The Nokia Music PC Client recently changed to the Nokia Ovi player. What were the reasons behind this change and will we see the Nokia Music store changing its name to the Ovi Music store sometime soon?

The change to the Nokia Ovi Player branding forms part of the constant evolution of the service towards offering the best possible experience to our consumers.

Rihanna exclusive on Nokia

RB: Recently Rihanna in association with Nokia launched her new album ‘Rated R’ with 2 exclusive tracks which are only available on Nokia Music and Comes With Music. Will Nokia become a lot more involved in exclusive music releases and events such as this - not only internationally but also in South Africa?

JL: We are very proud of our association with Rihanna and are please with the reaction to the exclusive show held recently at London’s Brixton Academy. The show was the first ever public performance of Rihanna’s new album and was broadcast live to Nokia Music Store customers around the world. Jay Z made a surprise appearance too. We will certainly be further developing our relationship with artists like Rihanna and will continue to offer exclusive content, and pre-release content, to our consumers as we become increasingly integrated into the global music industry.

One billion devices - the world’s biggest entertainment media network?

RB: Tero Ojanperä was quoted earlier this year as saying Nokia would quickly become the world’s biggest entertainment media network. Nokia Music – will we see Nokia TV next?

JL: The fact that we have more than a billion connected devices in the hands of consumers around the world does put us in a great position to roll out new services to people any where any time. Right now the focus is on music and refining our music offering to present the most compelling service available. We believe that Comes With Music gives consumers the consumption method they have been looking for whilst ensuing that artists and record companies get paid for their work.

RB: Can I give my friend a Nokia Music voucher this festive season? If so – can I purchase it online , in store?

JL: You can indeed. Vouchers are available nationwide from all CNA, Edgars and Musica stores and come in various denominations from R50 to R1000. This is a fantastic development as it allows non credit card holders to access online music. Click here to find out more.

Did someone say Party Bus?

RB: Tell us more about the Nokia Comes With Music party buses!

JL: The bus is awesome! We’ve taken a double decker bus and kitted it out as a mobile stage. It will be traveling around the country over December bringing some of the coolest bands in the country to some of the hottest holiday destinations. The artists involved include Mix & Blend,  aKing, Ashtray Electric, Straatligkinders, Taxi Violence and Loyiso. To support the tour we’ll be giving away free tracks to people who attend the gigs.

[UPDATE:  Check out the full schedule here]

Some of the free tracks are:

• aKING “The Dance”
• Ashtray Electric “Quite Overstared”
• Straatligkinders “Die Relevansie Van Vriendskap
• Taxi Violence “Valley Of Shadows”
• Mix n Blend “Shall We Swing (feat. Fletcher)”

Competition: [UPDATE: Competition has now closed]

Here are the list of winners:

20-track Nokia Music vouchers:  Lee-Shay Collison, Mike Davis, Marietjie Welthagen, Nitesh Sewnandan, Isaac Frank

50-track Nokia Music voucher: Trevor Maartens

100-track Nokia Music voucher: Jan Blaauw

Nokia 5130 handsets with 1 year’s unlimited Comes with Music downloads:  Daniel Constandse, Melissa Strydom

Congratulations to all the Winners!

View the Competition Terms and Conditions here