I read something online the other day about how Apple had gobbled up Lala.com, one of the streaming online music delivery sites. The commentaries that I've read extol the virtues of the company's business model. You get to listen to any tune you want for free…but just one time before you have to fork over $.10 to hear it again anywhere, anytime through a web browser. You want to "own" the .MP3 of the song? You're going to pay another $.79, almost equivalent to the iTunes price. The fundamental difference between the Apple iTunes model and the one that Lala.com created is one of ownership vs. rental. And this is where it gets really interesting.

Is music something that you need to own to enjoy? I don't think so. Sure it's great to have some great music discs in your shelves or ripped to your iPod, but isn't what you really want is the ability to hear the music anytime through a convenient delivery system? Sure. And with the power of mobile computing smart phones and the increased geographical coverage of the telecoms it just makes sense that keeping your music catalog "in the cloud" might be the best way to go. It certainly works for Lala.com and someday it just might work for HD surround music as well.

So this whole new rental scheme got me thinking. It's seems like a great model for the low bandwidth, stereo MP3 world that dominates commercial music. But could this possible be expanded to include the kind of audio quality that HD music download sites require? Could the model be expanded further to make room for HD surround tracks delivered via the cloud? In the long term (maybe 5-10 years), the answer is absolutely yes. The bandwidth via wireless connections will improve, the power and sound quality of portable devices will improve and the cost structure revised to make HD surround music available "anytime, anywhere" a very realistic possibility. It’s coming and I can't wait.

This new paradigm will not replace the comfort of your favorite lounge chair and the large B&W 800D surround speakers that you enjoy in your own home surround music system, but will augment your listening pleasure when you're not at home. Audiophiles can still enjoy their vinyl and tubes. More progressive listeners can revel in full HD video and HD audio through their home theater system. But the possibility to take your HD surround listening experience on the road and connect via the Internet…wirelessly, is definitely worth considering.

I may be unusual because of the business that I'm in and because I'm addicted to HD surround music but I rarely listen to the music on the radio. I'm tuned into NPR almost exclusively when I'm driving…and I own a car that could be playing DVD-Audio discs in full 5.1 surround. I'd rather listen to the news or other programming available through NPR than be hammered by the commercial stations that are available in the Southern California marketplace. Dynamic range and fidelity are not part of current terrestrial FM broadcasting.

I've become an HD surround music snob! I would much rather spend an hour or two in my primary listening room enjoying one of my recordings or those of other dedicated high quality labels than put on a CD or listen to FM radio (don't get me started on the crap that parades as HD Radio!). I have to have surround and I have to have the dynamic and frequency response extensions available with higher sample rates and longer word lengths. Nothing else can satisfy my love of recorded music.

I will occasionally put on the Beatles, Peter Gabriel or Counting Crows (one of my favorite rock bands), but in reality I prefer an upscale listening session.