According to this article on Tech On!, Sony is planning on using their newest flash drive, the Pocket Bit Mini (pictured) as a "packaged media" device, similar to the role played by CDs or DVDs in the past. Basically, you'd buy one of these tiny USB drives (currently on sale in Japan only) preloaded with Sony media products (music, video, probably some extras) and then you'd plug them into a computer for viewing.

This idea isn't exactly new - companies have been selling branded flash drives that act as promotional tools for things like movies over the past year and the idea itself doesn't seem particularly practical to mass use quite yet - although with the growth of the media center PC idea, I could see how buying music or movies on flash drives could have a big appeal. What I think would be even cooler, though would be for Sony to modify one of their existing mp3 players (or introduce a new one) that could play the data from these Pocket Bit Minis directly, allowing you to hear the music you purchased as soon as you buy it.

Via Gadgetell