Lanspery disputed that argument, pointing out that is similar to traditional radio stations. Jeremy Schwartz, a new-media analyst at Forrester, praised 's idea, but he said it could hinder sales if people can dial in anytime and listen to music online. More than 850,000 Internet listeners spent 1.4 million hours last November tuned to online radio stations, according to statistics from The Arbitron Co., a media research company. It's only a matter of time before competitors catch on to the idea and offer free full-length music selections at their sites, said Nidositko. Customers can access Real Player 7 and Internet Explorer 5.0 or Netscape 4.7 for Macintosh computers or PCs.
Visitors at can not only listen to full-length songs, but they can also sample five-minute portions of books on tape, which normally run six to 11 hours. and Borders Group Inc.'s, let visitors sample songs for only 30 seconds.
"This is going to enhance our music store and continue the momentum."ī's major competitors, Inc. "It's really just providing a more entertaining shopping experience," said spokeswoman Lisa Lanspery. Visitors can then purchase music directly from the site. The station offers 16 music categories including alternative, blues, country and pop. Like traditional stations, listeners are limited to the songs that are currently playing, but they can select the type of music they want to hear. The radio station,, lets listeners tune into full-length music from a catalog of 25,000 songs. "It's just another way to market a product they're selling." "It only makes sense," said Rebecca Nidositko, an analyst at Forrester Research Inc. The free radio station, said analysts, is 's latest strategy to move ahead of the pack in the fierce battle among Internet music and bookstores. 1, Tina Turner's newest hits are among the 25,000 songs visitors can listen to at no charge. At Inc.'s new online radio station, which kicked off Feb.