Sonos multi-room-audio systems can now be controlled by an iPod touch or 3G iPhone claim the Company who are set to come under threat from new multi room wireless systems from Sony and early next year Samsung.

They have also upgraded the Internet radio capabilities of its wireless  by expanding the number of free Internet radio stations it receives to more than 15,000 from about 400 however the Company and their partners  are still denying Australians access to the same online content as US buyers of the Sonos system.

In an interview with TWICE in the US  Sonos president and COO Phil Abram said.”We have been picking off the component-audio rack, and now we’re picking off the audio tuner,” said  The multizone system distributes music wirelessly from a networked PC or network-attached storage (NAS) device to audio systems in other rooms. The system also accesses Internet radio stations and music services through a broadband connection without the aid of a networked PC.

Expanding the system’s streaming options will broaden Sonos’ core audience of 35- to 50-year-olds who lack the time to rip music and store it on a networked PC, Abrah said. Consumers who buy Sonos systems, he noted, listen to more music more often after their purchase.

The Internet-streaming enhancements, are part of a downloadable upgrade available today at no charge for current owners. In about six weeks, the enhancements will also be available of the box to consumers as a running change.

In another development, the company has launched a free application that turns a Wi-Fi-equipped iPhone or iPod touch into an RF wireless remote that controls a Sonos system in Wi-Fi-equipped homes. The Sonos Controller for iPhone, which can be downloaded from the iPhone App Store, lets iPhones and Touches perform almost all of the same functions available through Sonos’ own LCD-equipped RF remote, although with a different graphical user interface. The Sonos controller uses a scroll wheel instead of a touchscreen.