Pono

Pono is a proprietary audio file format expected to launch in 2014, backed by musician Neil Young. The files will only be available from a single music store, and can only be played at full quality on a specialized music player (though apparently they can be exported in lower-quality form into formats supported by other music players). Thus, Young is attempting to create a walled-garden digital music ecosystem. Supposedly the sound quality is better than other digital music, though critics have questioned whether there's sufficient market for something like this which is too expensive for casual listeners but probably still not high enough in quality for the high-end audiophiles, who are fanatical about only using their preferred audio components at all stages of the process (including exorbitantly-priced cables and connectors), and aren't likely to be satisfied with the non-interoperable proprietary hardware of this system.

Links

 * PRESS RELEASE: PONO Launch @ SXSW by Neil Young
 * Neil Young’s Pono Ecosystem Will Put a ‘Freemium’ on Sound Quality
 * Neil Young launches new music player based on magic beans and unicorn poop.