Vodafone to launch unlimited UK music service

Vodafone Group unveiled a range of new handsets and services for the Christmas period yesterday, including an unlimited and exclusive music service in Britain to challenge the iPhone.

Vodafone has signed an exclusive deal with British music firm Omnifone that will give its customers an unlimited number of tracks to their mobile phones for a weekly fee of £1.99.

Customers will have unlimited access to more than a million tracks from all the major music labels and will be able to download songs while on the move.

The service called MusicStation will be available on new Vodafone UK handsets as well as existing 2.5G and 3G mobiles, meaning most customers would not need to upgrade their phones. Vodafone already offers a pay-per-track music service, but it said the unlimited offering via MusicStation would be the first of its kind for mobile customers in Britain.

"Today's announcement is a first for music on the mobile in the UK and means a fundamental change to the way people experience music on their phones," Tim Yates, chief marketing officer of Vodafone UK said.

Analysts had initially expected Vodafone to be in prime position to secure an exclusive, pan-European deal to sell Apple's iPhones, which have flown off the shelves in the US, but media reports have suggested the deal will go to its rivals.