James Delahunty
31 Aug 2007 5:06
Sony Corp. is acknowledging that its proprietary ATRAC music format was a market flop by shutting down all its Connect music stores and making its devices compatible with other formats. The company made the announcement yesterday at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin. The company also unveiled a pair of new Walkman players that support MP3, Windows Media Audio (WMA) and AAC files.
Sony's new NWZ-A810 and NWZ-S610 can also display photographs and playback video content and both come loaded with an FM tuner. Now Sony will phase out Connect music stores that sell in the ATRAC format. "This gives customers greater flexibility in their music software approach," the company said in a statement. "As a result, Sony will be phasing out the Connect Music Services based on Sony's ATRAC audio format in North America and Europe."
The new Walkman players do not directly support ATRAC. "We are offering conversion software to convert ripped non-secure ATRAC files to MP3," Sony spokeswman Linda Barger said. A specific date for closure of the services was not set, but a message sent to Connect users confirmed they will close before March 2008. Sony's Connect eBook service for the Sony Reader will not be affected.
Sony's new Walkman players come with 8GB, 4GB and 2GB storage capacities. Prices range from $120 to $230. Additionally, a third line, the NWZ-B100, will play audio only and will come in 1GB and 2GB models, costing $60 and $80 respectively.
Source:
Yahoo (AP)