It's not all about Apple

Yesterday's launch of 'oh, so it's a bit like Last FM' Apple's Ping service and rather lovely-looking new iPods might have overshadowed somewhat - yes - another supposed iTunes killer from Sony.

It's not, of course. It has a silly name - Qriocity - and is more about keeping the Playstation on a level with other games devices:

Fujio Nishida, head of Sony's Networked Products & Services Group, said users would be able to transfer the music they download across any platform including smart phones.

He said: "We are excited to offer our customers high-quality, cloud-based entertainment experiences across many of Sonys network-enabled devices."

The flexibility - at least within the brand - is to be welcomed, but it sounds much more about making it easy for Sony to sell video to their existing customers than an actual bid to topple iTunes.