MP3 Players: Two former executives of AST...

MP3 Players: Two former executives of AST Research Inc. unveiled a new-media company that has developed a portable stereo that plays digital music--so-called MP3 files--and that will retail for less than $400. AudioRamp.com in Tustin is being formed by Safi Qureshey, former chairman of the onetime PC maker, and Dan Sheppard, its former vice president of global corporate marketing. The new venture will make a device that plays MP3 files, which use a compression technology that shrinks audio files at near-CD quality for easy transmission over the Net. The company’s goal is to offer easier access to the massive amount of digital audio content becoming available online, said Qureshey, who has invested more than $1 million in Audio-Ramp.com. AudioRamp.com also will roll out an online service that lets people to pull digital music from the Net, browse Web radio stations and customize their virtual jukeboxes. Analysts predict that 15% of all music will be bought, sold and listened to in a digital environment by 2003.