The European Market for Portable Digital Music is Expected to Reach EUR 3 Billion in 2005, So Car Manufactures Now Have to Respond to New Customer Demands

DUBLIN, Ireland--Dec. 5, 2005--Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c28877) has announced the addition of The Trends and Challenges For In-Car Audio in the Digital Age to their offering.

This report provides a detailed analysis of the key market trends and technical developments for the audio systems offered by manufacturers in Europe.

The report analyses the trends in traditional playback media and sound quality but its main focus is on digital music and the challenges that vehicle manufacturers face in trying to predict and satisfy their customers' rapidly evolving requirements.

The consumer boom in digital music presents immediate and future challenges for the technology, design and function of vehicle audio systems. A new report from the telematics specialists maps out in detail the current trends and assesses the options open to manufacturers to meet user requirements and expectations. The research, Trends and Challenges for In-car Audio in the Digital Age, provides an independent and informed guide to the most effective short and longer term strategies for developing vehicle systems to provide digital compatibility and improved sound quality.

We expect the European market for portable digital music players to become a EUR 3 billion industry in 2005. Consumers increasingly expect to be able to access their personal music collection wherever they are. This raises expectations of what a vehicle audio system should be able to provide, beyond the established format of an analogue radio tuner and CD player that features as a minimum in almost all new vehicles today. We show how some manufacturers are already responding to the market by providing systems which can play digital files stored on compact discs or by providing an auxiliary input to link personal music players, such as iPods and MP3 players, to the vehicle's speaker system. Options to use memory cards and USB flash drives are also being introduced.

Topics Covered

1. Executive Summary

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Conclusions & recommendations

1.3 Summary of key points

2. Moving audio into the digital age

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Digital radio trends

3. Playback media

3.1 Cassette

3.2 Compact Disc (CD)

3.3 MiniDisc (MD)

3.4 Future Outlook

4. Sound quality

4.1 Number and type of speakers

4.2 Premium branding

4.3 Surround sound technology

4.4 Future Outlook

5. Digital music overview

5.1 Introduction to digital music

5.2 Digital music formats

5.3 Sources of digital music

5.4 Digital Rights Management (DRM)

5.5 Using digital music

6. Digital music on media

6.1 Compact Disc (CD)

6.2 Digital Versatile Disc (DVD)

6.3 Memory cards

6.4 USB flash drives

6.5 Removable Hard Disc Drive (HDD)

6.6 Embedded Hard Disc Drive (HDD)

6.7 Future technologies

7. Digital music on nomadic devices

7.1 Wired integration

7.2 Wireless integration

7.3 Future outlook

8. Attachments

Attachment 1. Playback media supported by vehicle manufacturers

Attachment 2. Separate CD changer locations

Attachment 3. Number of speakers offered by vehicle manufacturers

Attachment 4. Premium brands used by vehicle manufacturers

Attachment 5. Surround sound formats

Attachment 6. Comparison of WAV and MP3 bit rates

Attachment 7. Memory card formats

Attachment 8. Vehicle manufactures offering wired integration of nomadic devices

List of Figures and Tables

Summary

This report provides a detailed analysis of the key market trends technical developments for the audio systems offered by vehicle manufacturers in Europe.

The report analyses the trends in traditional playback media sound quality but its main focus is on digital music and challenges that vehicle manufacturer's face in trying to predict and satisfy their customers' rapidly evolving requirements.

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c28877