Would you buy one?

Google Inc. is developing a home-entertainment system that streams music wirelessly throughout the home and would be marketed under the company's own brand, according to people briefed on the company's plans.

The effort marks a sharp shift in strategy for Google, which for the first would time would design and market consumer electronic devices under the Google brand. The company has up to now mainly focused on developing the operating system that powers devices such as smartphones, tablets and televisions and allowing other companies to build and brand the hardware that uses it.

Google's Android unit has led a multi-year effort to develop the new entertainment device, which is expected to be unveiled later this year, people familiar with the matter said.

Note that it's from inside the Android team - not a Motorola tieup. (Yet.) And: how big is the market for music-streaming devices? Isn't that what Sonos does at the high end and things like Logitech and others at the low end?

"The arrival of Apple's iCloud and iTunes Match this month, coupled with Spotify's October drop of its invite-only requirement, seem to have shaken the online music world.

"All the other online music service players seem to be desperately searching for ways to compete."

Included in this article: Napster has been bought (in, take note, an all-stock deal) from Best Buy by Rhapsody (the former Real Networks). Rhapsody has about 800,000 paying subscribers. Napster has... an unknown number. Spotify has about 10m, of whom 2m are paying. Is Napster + Rhapsody bigger than Spotify?