AOL, D-Link Tune in Customers

Looking to expand digital home entertainment, America Online and D-Link have
introduced an offering using D-Link’s MediaLounge DSM-320 media
component and Radio@AOL.

“We’ve worked with AOL in the past on some minor deals, but this is the
first time we are actually delivering content for them,” Darek Connole, a
D-Link spokesman, told internetnews.com.

For D-Link, which specializes in gear for wireless home networks, partnering
with the Internet arm of media giant Time Warner provides it
with a long list of potential customers for the new product and a large trove
of music. Radio@AOL offers music, news and sports. The service also has a
playlist of over 150,000 songs spanning 16 genres of music.

The MediaLounge, which also streams digital music, photo and video files
from any PC on the network (via wired or wireless connection) to the TV or
stereo, will be sold online and by national retailers for approximately
$200.

AOL, meanwhile, can use the partnership as an added selling point to move
its dial-up customers to its more expensive broadband service.

The alliance is the latest in the field of digital home entertainment, which
is growing because of the increased number of broadband connections,
wireless technologies and new content services.

Larger IT and electronics firms, including Dell , Intel
, Microsoft , HP and
Sony, have invested in products that touch some part of the space.

Though a lot of progress has been made, experts say challenges remain
concerning security, interoperability and connectivity, and
digital rights.

AOL broadband subscribers who buy D-Link’s MediaLounge DSM-320 receive
unlimited access to Radio@AOL, a service offering 175 programmed
stations.

Non-members receive the full service free until Sept. 30, after which they can
subscribe to AOL broadband for $14.95 per month or pay a monthly fee for
Radio@AOL, AOL spokeswoman Adele Gambardella said. The cost of the service
for nonmembers will be set in the next few weeks.

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