Hear 2.0

Yep, Sony's PSP is now a radio - in the US, too

As predicted just days ago (not just by me, of course), the Sony PSP will now be redefined as a radio (too) here in the US.

According to the announcement:

Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) is offering a firmware upgrade for the PlayStation Portable (PSP) that will bring Internet radio via AOL’s ShoutCast Radio to the handheld entertainment devices. Using the update, PSP users will have access to more than 20,000 stations using an Internet connection through a Wi-Fi hot spot. A variety of songs and genres can be streamed through the player, including pop, hip-hop, rock and talk.

Sony says "more than 50 percent of PSP owners use the system to listen to music," although it's not clear how much of that listenership will hereafter come from Internet radio. Nor is it clear how much of that listening substitutes for mp3 listening rather than radio listening.

What does "radio" mean when more and more things feature radio-like functionality?

What business are you really in?

And what does it mean for your future?

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