Orange France has launched an eMusic style download platform which combines the a la carte and subscription based download models. Users pay a monthly subscription of twelve Euros and can download up to 500 tracks a month from a catalogue including music from all four majors. Once downloaded they have permanent access to those tracks, even if they let their subscription lapse.
The service will be available both via Orange's broadband network and via Orange mobile phones - the latter service will let users sync their mobile and PC music collections, so tracks bought over the air to a mobile can be easily transferred to a PC. The only downside to all this is that - unlike eMusic - the files come with digital rights management embedded which means that [a] users can only copy the tracks to five devices and [b] they won't play on an iPod. All four majors and some indies are on board though the French music publishers - via Sacem - haven't completed their deal with the tel co, though an Orange spokesman told Billboard that a deal was close.
Similar services for Orange customers in the UK, Poland and Spain are reportedly in development.