Qriocity, Sony's new video and music streaming service, will be launched in the UK this autumn, the electronics giant has announced.

The service - pronounced 'curiosity' - will offer millions of songs and high definition films through all web-enabled Sony products, including the PlayStation 3, Bravia TVs and VAIO laptops.

Speaking at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin, Sony said it hoped the project, which it may open-up to third party developers at a later date, would become a competitor to Apple's iTunes.

Unlike Apple's product, the subscription service is cloud-based, meaning that users stream the media - much like Spotify and the BBC iPlayer - rather than downloading it.

While Sony has a huge potential market in its 50 million PlayStation users, the service will have some way to go to top iTunes, which celebrated its 10 billionth download earlier this year.