For £8.62 a month (that's what it works out if you pay the £1.99 a week over the year) you could be sampling as many tunes as you like from EMI, Warner Music, Universal Music and Sony BMG, as well as the leading independents.

The MusicStation software stores your files on a central server so you can access them, with your favourites or newest choices appearing on your phone.

That means you won't miss out on songs when you don't have access to a network, such as when you switch your handset to Flight Safe mode on a plane.

The software intelligently checks your phone to see how full it is and deletes the older tracks you've played the least if it needs to make room for new ones.

And because all the tracks aren't stored on a particular device, if a phone is stolen, lost or upgraded, a customer’s music, playlists, friends and preferences are restored automatically the first time MusicStation is accessed.

MusicStation will come installed on new Vodafone 2.5G and 3G mobile phones from November, while existing users will be able to download the application through the Vodafone Live service.

You won't be able to play your tunes elsewhere, though, as the e-AAC+ format files use digital rights management (DRM) to protect them from being shared illegally.

However, Tim Hadley, PR director for MusicStation, said a desktop version will be made available for PCs in the future.

The £1.99 weekly fee also includes data charges for Vodafone users and Hadley said users are not locked into a lengthy contract as it can be ended at any time.