The British music company Omnifone is launching a new cell phone-based music download service called MusicStation to take on Apple's iTunes Store in Europe. The service is scheduled to start on Monday, but unlike iTunes, is subscription-based and is for cell phones only, according to Forbes.

Omnifone describes MusicStation as an "all you can eat" service that lets subscribers download music directly to their phones. Weekly download fees start at �1.99 (about US$3.88), and Telenor ASA in Norway, and Vodacom in South Africa were the first two major carriers to sign on.

The service is initially launching in just a few countries, but is expected to expand throughout Europe and Asia before Apple starts selling the iPhone in November. Omnifone CEO Rob Lewis commented "We will ensure the vast majority of Europeans have the freedom to choose MusicStation by the time iPhone arrives in Europe. We will give consumers the choice they deserve."

Downloaded tracks will be encoded in the eAAC+ format, and include digital rights management copy protection to prohibit unauthorized copying or playback on unauthorized devices.

One key selling point for MusicStation is that it lets customers download music anywhere they can get a cell phone signal, unlike the iTunes Store that requires a computer, an Internet connection, and the iTunes application. Since it is a subscription based service, however, it also suffers from the same purchasing model that has proven unpopular for so many other iTunes competitors.