Pandora for iPhone will be a huge hit

I've mentioned it before, but I continue to be amazed at all the buzz about Pandora's online radio service, which creates playlists based on your musical tastes. About once a month, someone comes up to me and asks me if I'm familiar with it, and don't I just love it?

These fans seem to be casual music listeners in their thirties, knowledgeable about computers and personal technology but not obsessed with it. They may have an iPod at home, but have grown tired of their own personal music collection or haven't gotten around to connecting it to their car stereo. They're old enough to remember a time when music radio didn't suck, and would listen to more of it if they could find a station they liked. They're amazed at how well Pandora fits their musical tastes, and wish they had a way to listen to it away from the computer.

Pandora on the iPhone.

(Credit: Pandora)

I've never had this conversation about Last.fm, or iLike, or Imeem, or any other online music service. For whatever reason, Pandora seems to have hit a nerve with my demographic, just like MySpace did with teens and twentysomethings about two years ago.

In other words, Pandora's perfectly poised for a big mainstream bump. And the iPhone version, covered here by CNET's Donald Bell, is the necessary catalyst.

Once the early adopters have gotten through the queue, I think the iPhone will appeal mostly to this same audience. Thirtysomething professionals who are interested in but not obsessed with technology will find the iPhone to be the first phone that actually lets them do things they want to do without requiring a certified geek to show them how. (Example: snapping a decent-quality photo and e-mailing it from the phone. Doing that from my Verizon-enabled Razr is not easy, and the pictures suck. My neighbor did it from his new iPhone in five seconds.)

Pandora on the iPhone is attractive, intuitive, and offers an obvious tangible benefit--great music at no charge. Plus, if you just have to own a song, you can buy it from iTunes with one click (if you have an active Wi-Fi connection).

Pandora is already available for selected other phones, but there it costs a few bucks per month after a free trial. Plus, none of those other phones have the mainstream brand-name appeal of the iPhone. The only question is the money--once Pandora on the iPhone takes off, how will Pandora make money from it? I'm hoping they don't ruin the appeal of the service with overly intrusive advertising.

[shetaan819]

You fail to mention the sound quality of Pandora on the iPhone.....as an audiophile, I like to connect my iPhone 3G to my car via a direct line into my deck's AUX input and I'd like to listen to Pandora but I'm not going to do it if it doesn't sound like CD....

[nickatkins]

I hope, as an audiophile, you don't think CD is a panacea

[Serenity3000]

Actually I have the service on my Sprint phone and its only $2.99 a month. :)

[dave981]

been listening to the iphone pandora app all day - love it so far

[Eric Barbosa]

Got Pandora on my iPhone 3G and think it is the best free app on the app store. My guess is they make money through the iTunes affiliate program where if you click on that link to buy in iTunes they get a small share.

[kelmon]

Would I be correct in saying that Pandora on the iPhone does not work outside of the US, like the browser version, due to "licensing restrictions"? I used to love the service until they pulled the plug on the international users, which was a kicker because I'd been a paid subscriber.

[akehurst]

Suck it, Melodeo. Nutsie is dead.

[rwinners]

I'm impressed, much better than last.fm