Growth remains slow for mobile music services (Reuters)

By Antony Bruno 4 minutes ago DENVER (Billboard) - Struggling music subscription services have opened a new front in their battle for legitimacy: the mobile phone. But it's far from clear that the tactic will finally push them into the mainstream. The unveiling of RealNetworks' partnership with Verizon Wireless to extend the Rhapsody service into the mobile realm follows a still-evolving alliance between rival Napster and AT&T. Both partnerships are designed to reverse years of sluggish subscriber growth, skyrocketing customer acquisition costs and the inability of most MP3 players that are compatible with their services to make significant inroads against the market-dominating Apple iPod, which doesn't work with either service. Yet while the benefits that the wireless operators bring certainly look good on paper, they have... [read full story]