Slacker Music Service Launches Portable Player

Rather than compete with Apple’s market leading iPod, or Microsoft’s Zune challenger, Slacker is trying to attract customers through a different music-listening experience.

Slacker, an Internet radio station built around customizable programming, plans to ship in December a portable player that can download tunes from the Web site over a Wi-Fi or wired connection.

The Slacker player, made by Inventec, streams music from the Internet at no charge, if the user is willing to also receive ads.

Simply called the Slacker Portable Player, the device is unique in that it’s tied to a service that doesn’t sell individual songs or albums, but rather streams music at no charge, if the user is willing to also receive ads. A premium version with out ads and added features is available for $7.50 a month.

Full article: informationweek.com