Warner Music head Bronfman forecasts mobile music future

Speaking to investors at the annual CSFB Global Media Conference in New York City, Warner Music chairman and CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr. forecast dramatic changes to music distribution and consumption as next-generation handsets make it easier for listeners to download music and video. "The distinction between download and mobile will go away," Bronfman said, anticipating "seamless integration" between devices including PCs and wireless handsets. He added Apple's iTunes monopoly is coming to a close as carriers and handset makers roll out new multimedia services and devices: "Our distribution won't be as focused on a single customer in two to three years as it is today."

According to Bronfman, advertising will generate a larger portion of WMG revenues in coming years as the company adjusts to a new media landscape. "We had basically been releasing content on the same platform for 25 years, and we have to pick up the pace of technological innovation," Bronfman said. "We are an incumbent company in a transforming industry. Incumbent companies have a record of under-resourcing the new business and investing in turning around the core business--with the turnaround always just around the corner."

In a related rumor, a reliable inside source tells me that Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Universal Music Group unit Interscope Geffen A&M Records, is poised to announce a major deal with an unnamed U.S. wireless carrier to deliver exclusive audio and video content. Watch this space.

For more on Bronfman's investor talk:
- read this Variety article