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Apple Music Store Coming to Europe & iTunes in China
frankie writes "As reported everywhere, Apple is holding a press conference in London on Tuesday June 15. The entirely un-subtle official sound bite is "the biggest story in music is about to get even bigger", not what we've come to expect from Lord Steve." Or read through the Reuters report. In other news, it appears that Apple has struck a deal with China's second larger computer manufacturer to preinstall iTunes.
In related news, Microsoft's appeal to the EU has been leaked to the press. It seems to consist of an attack against Apple. "Hey, if Apple can preload their iTunes "media player", why can't we? We should be able to do it too!", said an anonymous source close to the Microsoft legal team. Many legal experts seem to think Microsoft 5-year old kid "If he can do it, I can do it to" antics will fail miserably.
Hmmm.
ughhh...music?
I've been using iTunes for Windows since release, and although I can't actually buy from the iTMS, I've found it an excellent tool for finding music I like - being able to listen to the samples directly from iTunes is a godsend. Personally, I don't see the problem with the DRM Apple use - sure, it's restrictive, but it's not as bad as some - and I can certainly see myself buying from the store upon opening.
All we need now is for Pepsi to offer free songs too...
And tomorrow the stock exchange will be the human race
Didn't Jobs say that Japan would be the first non-US country to get the iTMS? Or did that change somehow?
But every machine that ships with iTunes, ships with QuickTime.
The big issue, stated time and again, is that Microsoft has a desktop monopoly, so they can't bundle the same things that others can. If Apple were in a monopoly position, you can bet your bottom dollar that the Slashdot crowd would be hollering just as loud as they do against Microsoft (which isn't, incidentally, that loud).
It doesn't have anything to do with the mysterious anti-Microsoft pro-Apple conspiracy. People just like rooting for the underdog, even if the underdog would be just as Evile as the top dog if/when given the chance.
Dlugar
Computer Go: Writing Software to Play the Ancient Game of Go
Microsoft has already done this with media player, only they didn't strike up any deals, they just said OK yah this will be on your computers now because it's part of windows. They did the same thing with IE. Only what everyone got pissed off with IE about was the fact that they told people, hey you can have Windows with IE but you can't put netscape on your computers. Otherwise you can't have either. Apple isn't telling any companies to take out media player.
There are rumours that Apple may launch iTMS Canada at the same time. I guess that'd allow them to retain the element of surprise! Anyhoo, I've got my fingers crossed. Hopefully songs will run 99 cents CAD.
not quite. Are they running OS X with iTunes? Nope, it'll be a M$ based system with iTunes as a 3rd party software. That is the difference.
Evolution or ID?
I click on that Google News link, and lo and behold: this story on Slashdot is the first article in the list. So naturally, I click on that...
iTunes store may not be accessible but there are over 1 billion people there and iTunes syncs with the ipod so imagine how many ipods they could sell there.
Evolution or ID?
This question has already been asked and answered.
I will be very interested to see how iTMS does in China. That's going into the core of the area where organized piracy has traditionally been the main music and software market.
China has been gaining a large middle class, and a lot of wealth. So, I think there is a big enough potential market that is able to purchase music. We'll see if they are willing to purchase music.
I went to China on a business trip last year, and while walking through an open market in Shanghai I couldn't take five steps without being approached by a kid wanting to sell CD's and DVD's for less than a dollar a piece.
Concerningthe Apple press release">:
Why does Apple insist on calling iTunes/Pod the "World's Best Digital Music Experience"?
It's true--they're becoming too Microsoft-ish if they title the article that based on the idea that the iPod is the #1 music player in the world (1st par).
Even if that's the case, I should hope it's not the best digital music experience. Frankly, unless they've got a huge frickin' mixing board running separate tracks for all instruments rolled into a single player, then all it is is the best portable player. The Best digital music experience...? That costs thousands of dollars in the form of recording/playback equipment and big fucking speakers.
with floating excnage rates, the iTunes store can be somewhat volatile for canadian users. i for one would be much more inclined to use a service that billed in CAD, and i'm sure that there are others are out there that agree with me on this one.
Canada is regarded in this way by many american companies though, and really do we have an option? Well, we do, and that is pay in USD or go without
please tell me the names of artists which apple computer represents as a music label.
oh yeah, there aren't any.
please tell me the ISBN numbers of any CDs which apple computer manufactures for sale.
oh yeah, there aren't any.
apple computer is not behaving as a music label. they are behaving as a website which acts as a 3rd party for music sales.
From your link: That contract stipulated Apple Computer could use the logo for computers, data processing and telecommunications, while the Beatles could retain it for music, according to documents filed by the pop group's lawyers at the High Court.
Apple Computer is providing a massive data processing environment (iTunes Music Store) and allows people to purchase music from -other- labels through this telecommunications link.
Besides the fact that an incredibly common fruit, the apple, being trademarked is absurd in the first place.
MORTAR COMBAT!
Now if only they would stop neglecting Canada...
I still don't understand why they don't have iTMS in Canada yet.
"While I'm sure it's all fine and dandy that Apple is now bringing more capitalism to China"
:)
You're implying that China is communist. It's not truly communist - the country would not have experienced such massive growth in population if it wasn't for western companies investing in textiles factories, etc. in China. China owes a lot to western countries for it's absoloutely massive period of growth after the past fifty years. Considering I just three hours ago wrote a two page essay on it for an A-Level...
Isn't China's "official" OS going to be Linux? If this is the case, it would be hard for all those people on Linux machines to use ITunes
By the way, just use hymn to unlock your files.
Umm. Actually, iTunes can use mp3 natively if you want it to. It can also use unprotected AAC. There is also a plugin to do Ogg with iTunes.
Don't let fears over iTunes' "incompatibility" damn you-- it's not Windows Media, with a click of a button in the preferences you can set it to encode in something you can use in any player that you prefer.
The fruit isn't trademarked; the use of the fruit to sell computers trademarked. Using it to sell anything else will not get you sued.
I just discovered allofmp3.com over the weekend, thanks to others mentioning it on Slashdot, so I'm doing my part to spread the word. They have a good selection (though not as broad as Apple's), but the pricing is unbeatable -- $0.01 or $0.02 per MB.
Best of all, the encoding is almost always selectable -- you can choose MP3 (including the LAME alt-preset settings), WMA, OGG, MP4, and a couple of others I've forgotten. You can even get the tracks lossless if you want.
I can't remember getting this excited about an Internet site since the first time I streamed European radio via RealPlayer in 1997. Understand: I've been an AVLA-licensed DJ for 13 years. I rarely spend my own money on music; I get it all from the record companies (whose licensing terms, for DJs at least, are a lot better in Canada than they are in the States -- we can burn multiple copies for performance, are licensed to play directly from MP3, etc.), in exchange for a nominal fee. But last night I spent about US$17 and downloaded about 220 songs. About half of that was replacing CDs I've previously owned but that are now damaged or lost. Another 20% was probably old favorites from the 80s that I remember fondly but am not willing to spend a lot of money on (Sly Fox or Paul Hardcastle for example).
Don't want to give your credit card to the Russians? Fine -- they take PayPal. I paid $10 for 1GB of download, and when it was obvious I was going to blow past that amount, I added another $10. Simple and painless.
iTUnes and all the comparable services (PureTracks, etc.) use DRM-encumbered formats. These are unencumbered MP3s that work great on my 15GB Archos Jukebox Recorder.
In short, allofmp3 is pretty much exactly what I've been wanting in a download service. They claim it's legal in Russia (see the site and some discussion forums), and it's legal for me to download here in Canada (heck, my wife will be burning half the music to CDs that we've paid the CRIA licensing fees for -- most of our CDs are used for backups and/or digital photos), so for as long as they're around they've got my business.
Which begs the question: What will community consensus say if Linux continues on its current trajectory and achieves enough market share to be considered a monopoly in certain markets, like service operating systems? Would the community turn against Linux and root for the underdogs, namely *BSD, Apple, and Microsoft?
Sarcasm and hyperbole are the final refuges for weak minds
What I want to know is if they're going to be making all the music in all regions available to all the other regions that have itms available. I would KILL to be able to buy some J-Pop and local rock and folk music from parts of Europe in AAC (yes, I know, .ogg r0x0rz your s0ckz0rz, but AAC is readily available and still high quality). It would be so easy to access tons of new material (especially stuff that you just can't find in Texas, or most other states for that matter), which is one of the secondary purposes of itms (the first, of course, I won't argue is making money).
You know you're commenting on Slashdot when... you have to make several provisos to be sure you're understood.
Cthulu saves... in case he gets hungry later.
::helping geeks get laid since 1983::
Hey now! You said something that actually shows real knowledge of iTunes on Slashdot. And you told someone that their worries over Ogg aren't really valid. And that the world's most popular MP3 player can play MP3s! Are you allowed to do that?
Though AllOfMP3.com is a legally questionable operation
It's not a legally questionable operation. It is legal according to Russian law, and it's a Russian company, so it's legal.
The major difference has been past behavior. Microsoft has shown time and time again that they will happily screw over their customers every chance they get to maintain their power and profits. While Apple is also a for-profit corporation, their history has shown from the very, very beginning a different philosophy of "changing the world" and making it a better place (as lofty a goal as that may be).
For instance, while we agree DRM is a Bad Thing, if we accept that it is a prerequisite for successful online distribution of music, which would you rather have? Apple's terms or Microsoft's? Who has fought as much as possible for liberal licensing terms (and not opened their stores without them)? What about Apple fighting royalties on MPEG-4 licensing and not releasing Quicktime 6 until they were settled?
Apple has a much better track record of working with us and for us than Microsoft, and as such they get our support.
I don't know what kind of crack I was on, but I suspect it was decaf.
This is the most incredibly capitalist idea that I have ever heard from a reputable manufacturer of computers so far.
Knowing the average wealth of the Chinese population, what in the earth was Apple thinking or what were they smoking up in the Valley when they come up with this brilliant idea I am wondering.
While most people in Chine is on the border of (or may be right in the middle of) poverty in US standarts, what do they expect from this deal. Sell these people digital songs $1-a-pop ?
Hmmm.. I am wondering if I should eat today or shell out my food allowance to download the latest Eminem track ? Hmmmnn... Hard choice, but I'll go with the food.
__________
The more I know people, the more I love animals
You're also not giving a single cent to the artists in any shape or form, instead to some dodgy russian company, may as well just pirate it.
Does that mean you're trained not to play "Wild Thing" or "Mony Mony" more than once per wedding?
well, unless you're in some kind of opposite-day mode where you consider "lies" as being true, then yes, iTunes is the World's Best Digital Music Experience. Otherwise, if you'd rather side with facts, iTunes is a bloated application which hardly stacks up against other programs like Winamp or Foobar, or several other competing applications. Apple just has always had more money to throw at their marketing to hook in people who'll follow the newest trends.
Probably not. The sheer number of distros would ensure that, while 'linux' may have majority market share, a single distro would never gain enough to be considered a monopoly.
The other point that I think needs to be made is that we're talking about bundling software. If, ?somehow?, linux manages to bundle some software with a required portion of the OS (kernel wont load without mozilla, lets say) then most definitely there will be an outcry. I would expect riots, defections to *BSD, and lonely men all over the globe having nothing to do on the weekends.
I also expect that this is why such a bundling wont happen. It's bad karma to anger your entire user base.
"I am the Black Mage! I casts the spells that makes the peoples fall down!" ~8BT
If you like stiffing artists that's your business. I'll stick with a system where at least a little money get's back to the artists I like.
Apart from the ability to select music quality, I don't really see where allofmp3.com is any different than downloading a song from P2P.
As for iTunes "Encumberment" - perhaps you missed out on Hymn?
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Do not confuse monopoly and monoculture. Both are bad, for different reasons, but they're not the same.
---- Take the Space Quiz!
apple computer is not behaving as a music label. they are behaving as a website which acts as a 3rd party for music sales.
From your link: That contract stipulated Apple Computer could use the logo for computers, data processing and telecommunications, while the Beatles could retain it for music, according to documents filed by the pop group's lawyers at the High Court.
They could violate the trademark without acting like a label. However, notice the distinct lack of the Apple logo on the iTMS. Also notice that the iTMS used to be called the Apple Music Store but now is officially known as the iTunes Music Store.
Apple might be the name of the company, but it's clear that they are trying not to use the Apple name or logo in connection with the music store.
We still have no sight of the iPod Mini and when Jobs announces a new iPod (which the rumour sites seem to think will happen - anyone got any further information?) then it'll be another six months before we can get our grubby mits on them.
Personally, I'm going to see what the new iPod will be like before deciding whether or not to wait ...
I am of course assuming they are going to announce one that is, however the last update was October 16th 2003, which was a fair while back now - especially in light of all the other entrants to the HD MP3 player market who are all vying for top spot.
Avantslash - View Slashdot cleanly on your mobile phone.
Uh, too outstanding to just not comment... I assure you that *not* "choosing" to work with the RIAA to sell mainstream music in the USA (no disrespect to independents) is a sure way of "choosing" to spend a loooong time in jail. Feel free to present us with your mainstream RIAA-free music online store, I will happily send you my money then, but it will be probably all spent feeding your army of lawyers.
dani++
I can already predict one album that will never be sold via the Chinese version of iTunes*:
"Chinese Democracy," by GNR (or The Offspring).
Granted, it'll have to be released first, and the way its going, it'll also be the official soundtrack to Duke Nukem Forever.
*Yes, yes, I realize that the annoucement is not for the iTunes Music Store to be released in China but just the software so please do not flame me over it.
"Right now, somewhere in this world, Scott Baio is plowing a woman he doesn't love," - Peter Griffin, *Family Guy*
As a test, I sent a giftcard from my account to a friend in Manchester. Worked like a charm, and he never had to use a CC (which is part of the trigger process to kill Euro users.)
ITMS has been available in Europe for a while, you just had to pay from the US.
Apple supports open source and contributes to existing open source projects.
Jesus was a compassionate social conservative who called individuals to sin no more.
You think poor peasants are buying computers at all, much less Apple computers? It's the growing middle class that are being targeted here, not the desperately poor.
Also, though I haven't RTFA, I haven't seen anyone saying that the music store will be available in China. iTunes preinstall != music store access.
It's not a legally questionable operation. It is legal according to Russian law, and it's a Russian company, so it's legal...
...In Russia. Since presumably most of the world does not live in Russia, its legality elsewhere is still in question.
I wonder if Apple is going to try and use GarageBand and Soundtrack with iTunes and the iTunes Music Store to bypass record companies altogether. You can easily upload your own iMix playlists already. The next step would be to allow artists to easily upload their own works to the iTunes Music Store directly through iTunes, and receive royalties through something similar to a PayPal account. If that were to happen, Apple could be perceived as some kind of a record label on its own.
The recording industry steadily profited from the advance of technology, allowing them to produce more elaborate music much cheaper than in the old days of analogue recording, editing, and distribution. That benefit surpassed them in favour of the the consumer when music file-sharing became feasible. Ever since then, the industry had fought technology tooth and nail, to try and keep the benefits in their hands. Now the technology reaching a point in which the record companies may be rendered totally obsolete. Apple and the record companies probably know this, but just aren't openly admitting it.
Since presumably most of the world does not live in Russia, its legality elsewhere is still in question.
But that's a dumb argument. There are American porns sites that would be illegal in many countries in the world, but that doesn't mean that the sites are of dubious legality. They are legal. Or if you don't like that example, many American web sites share personal data in a way that is not allowed by law in the EU, but again that doesn't mean they are illegal or dubious.
I think what you mean is that it may not be legal for people in the USA to use the allofmp3 web site. That may be the case. But allofmp3 is not "a legally questionable operation", unless you believe that all American porn sites are legally questionable because they would be illegal in certain other countries.
This is just in... Steve Jobs announced Airport Express at "D"
http://www.apple.com/airportexpress/
True to Apple's vision, Computers not Media Centers become hubs for your media!!! Absolutely freaking right on the spot... ! Now we know why Apple's not licensing the DRM to other players... You can bet that 50% of people who bought an iPod will buy this...
Here's Jobs describing the gizmo...
"We looked at the most popular place people listen to their music," said Jobs during his keynote at "D." "The first place is on the computer; Second is the iPod; The third place is in the car -- right now the solutions out there aren't very good but we are working with some folks on that; the next place is in the home."
what the fuck!!!!
iTunes = Apple-created music playing application iTunes Music Store (aka iTMS) = Apple-created online music purchasing / downloading "store" Seriously... how hard it is to understand the difference between the two?
Dumb argument? No. It apparently is legal in Russia. (which is what I said before).
I'm just asking if it is in fact legal to use within the USA and elsewhere? I haven't seen a definitive yes or no.
Huh. It's weird to believe something.
If Jobs can come through with a comparably elegant car angle, he's got me for that too. Tape adapters kind of suck, FM transmitters are so weak they lose signal strength from the dashboard to the antenna on my rear window. I want a little cradle or something, and not one with wires straggling all over the place.
"Fundamentalism" isn't about divine morality. It's about human authority.
In China you can buy FULL DVDs, Audio CDs and software CDs for about a buck. So you're saying they will pay a buck for every song? Get outta here!
Better 4 cents (or 11 cents, which I believe is the more common figure) than 0 cents.
The exact amount is worked out with the music label and their deal with the artist, Apple has nothing to do with it and it varies from label to label. Never mind the number of independent labels on the iTMS.
Integrate Keynote and LaTeX
If Apple isn't in the monopoly position when it comes to desktops how about in the MP3 player market? The masses keep buying iPods in the face of superior competition from the likes of iRiver, Rio, and even Dell for god's sake, but Apple refuse to let anyone use their proprietary DRM that they've wrapped around the AAC format except themselves. Rumours abound that MS are bringing our their own "iPod killer" but the difference is that MS will licence the DRM in their WMA format to anyone who wants it, including Apple, and have stated this in the past.
I'm just asking if it is in fact legal to use within the USA and elsewhere? I haven't seen a definitive yes or no.
I don't think there is a definitive answer to that question at the moment.
Lots of people argue that buying from allofmp3.com is illegal, but when you ask why, they say "it's obvious". From a legal perspective, I don't think it is obvious at all.
Now, distributing copyrighted material that you don't own is clearly illegal. But you're not doing that if you are downloading music from allofmp3.
Copying content that you do not have permission to copy is not legal, unless it meets certain criteria such an amount for research purposes. So doesn't that make it not legal to download from allofmp3? Not as far as I can see - you are purchasing something from someone who has a legal right to sell it. The fact that they are in another country doesn't matter - there's no law against you buying from foreign companies.
Now, it would be different if they were selling something that is clearly illegal in the USA (or something that was illegal to import), like child pornography. But they are not. Owning or purchasing mp3s is not illegal in itself.
To some people allofmp3 is clearly "not fair", but that doesn't make it illegal. I think the fact of the matter is that the laws surrounding these issues - purchasing digital content over the internet from other countries - are not yet clear. I expect the USA is putting pressure on Russia to change how internet companies are treated - currently they are classified as broadcasters, which allows allofmp3.com to do what it does legally. But until that happens, I have yet to see a convincing argument that downloading from allofmp3.com is illegal. Wrong, maybe, but then a lot of what the record companies do is wrong if we are looking at this from a moral perspective.
Actually, that's not true. ROMS, the Russian Organization for Multimedia and digital Systems, has legally licensed AllOfMP3. A portion of the income from every song sale goes to ROMS, which takes a small portion to cover operating costs and gives the rest directly to the artists - not through the record labels.
Bít, zabít, jen proto, ze su liska!
Not as far as I can see - you are purchasing something from someone who has a legal right to sell it.
And this is where you fail Law 101. They have a legal right to sell it (maybe) in russia. However, the same company that owns the music in russia does not own it in America and does not own it in the UK or Canada or Japan. Why do you think it took iTunes so long to get to these other countries? Because each country has it's own record labels and distributors whom you have to negotiate with.
T Money
World Domination with a plastic spoon since 1984
iTunes in communist China...
They must be renaming it ourTunes.
Click here for a free picture of an iPod!
Right. Let's reword this: "Does allofmp3.com have the proper license, granted by the copyright holder, to sell this product in Countries X, Y and Z?" I see nothing convincing, one way or the other. I'd like it to be, because it looks like a very good deal. As you say, the laws are not fully clear yet.
That what the record companies do may be/is wrong is irrelevant.
I still don't understand why they don't have iTMS in Canada yet.
Two words: Celine Dion.
Sorry, I can't manage that. It like buying $10 in postage to send a $2 check.
But sometimes it's the only way to send a check. It may seem silly, and you would like an alternative, but if the option is to send no check at all?
I have a decent job and figure I can afford the lousy overhead to let an artist know I like thier stuff. Every download is more than just money, it's also a sales figure that increases their chance at more money later.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
AllOfMP3 pays licensing fees to the Russian equivalent of the RIAA, when then distributes the money to the artists.
That brings to mind the old joke:
A mathematician and an engineer are sitting at a table drinking when a very beautiful woman walks in and sits down at the bar.
The mathematician sighs. "I'd like to talk to her, but first I have to cover half the distance between where we are and where she is, then half of the distance that remains, then half of that distance, and so on. The series is infinite. There'll always be some finite distance between us."
The engineer gets up and starts walking. "Ah, well, I figure I can get close enough for all practical purposes."
Well, allofmp3.com is kind of the inverse of that. If I'm only paying $.01 per MB, how much money is the artist really going to see? How do you know what the real cut is, or how they track payouts?
In any case, the figure is so close to zero that "for all practical purposes" it might as well be.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
And this is where you fail Law 101.
I need further convincing.
They have a legal right to sell it (maybe) in russia. However, the same company that owns the music in russia does not own it in America and does not own it in the UK or Canada or Japan.
Can I buy, say, a book or a DVD from another country and get it posted to me? Yes. In fact I do this quite a bit. The only legal issue is import duties. If that DVD or book or whatever is cheaper that in my own country, then the company that sells it here may not like it but tough, I'm not doing anything wrong. The company selling it to me may be doing something wrong if their country has export restrictions on the product, or if they are breaking a contract they have with the producers by selling that product to someone from another country. Otherwise, they're probably in the clear.
So, you haven't convinced me and I don't think I've "failed Law 101" - I think a lot of the people who argue that it is illegal to use allofmp3 would fail because they jump to conclusions without actually considering what the law actually says.
I expect this issue actually comes down to trade agreements between Russia and the rest of the world. Russia, you may be aware, is not currently a member of the WTO.
AllOfMp3 is illegal. There have already been arrests in Russia and Germany, and this is only the beginning
Can you point me to information about this on a legitimate news site, mr Anonymous? Because a Google search does not turn anything up.
...music.
What about Legend PC, introduced to many through this Wired Article.
Legend (at the time of writing, about a year and a half ago) had 3 times the market share of its nearest competitor (presumably the iTunes installer).
And as far as saying, "Who's gonna pay $X for a song in China?" Well, presumably the millions who own computers already. The article also mentions China's "Little Emperors"... Remember, you're mostly allowed only one child per couple in China. When you're only taking care of one kid, it's easy to spoil them and let them get a couple of songs a week.
Small potatoes make the steak look bigger.
that's every us label then, and every manufacturer of music hardware
-NOT support the use of the iTMS' proprietary DRM which not only limits what media player you want to play your music on (Most people prefer listening to their music on Winamp intead of being forced to use iTunes to listen to music they paid for), but what digital audio portable you want to use to listen to your music as well.it's your right not to buy music thru itms, and your right not to have an iPod. And good on ya. Me, even though I can't buy on iTms, still have a full iPod from my own cd collection, and files I have shared, not via p2p, but by either just ripping a mate's cd off their shelf, or copying the files directly. the latter is akin to what we used to do in school which was make cassettes of albums and share those out to friends on request. It is fair use and a fee is built into the price of the blank media.
-have the CHOICE of what format you want your music encoded in, instead of beign stuck with vanilla 128 AACs with Apple's proprietary and limiting DRM.iTunes allows you to export or rip to mp3, aac, at any quality setting you like, and the quicktime player lets you crossrip to anything. there is also plenty of shareware and *nix utils for doing all manner of things to your files.
-pay cheaper than you would for your music, with the added bonus of having more CHOICE with your music formats, and nto send a cent to support the RIAA or a company that supports/funds how they do business.you said that already.
I used to have a better sig than this, but I got tired of it
I asked what groups Apple Computer represented and you listed the Beatles! Hold the presses! Apple Computer owns the publishing rights to the Beatles??!?? HOLY SH!T!!!
yeah like Windows, Passport, Mcdonalds, Sun etc etc
yup, just like them. none of them are worth a damn as trademarks. Also FYI, I can open a hamburger restaurant and put the name 'McDonalds Hamburger Shack' on it -- I just can't put big-ass golden arches in front.
I'm not too young to remember Apple Music, and I know they "are the Beatles record company". Your answer to the question "what groups does Apple Computer represent as a music label" being "The Beatles" shows your low reading comprehension.
MORTAR COMBAT!
Because we have this: freenet:SSK@Qv3D1xm646Sat6DpmCt7BCyOGiQPAgM,S91vuF 3XDSROK6GSiWp9Xw/PlayFair//
Support a Europe-related section on Slashdot!
You are BLIND. If I cannot get a single brandname pc vendor to sell me a pc, without Windows (I'm a Linux developer), then it's obvious that Microsoft has a monopoly.
I ended up buying pc parts, and having someone assemble the thing for me.
Your second paragraph is exactly what is happening. Have you looked at the price of MS-Office recently? The price IS in the stratosphere. Why, because by bundling Office with every pc, they pretty much force everyone to use it (Way to go OpenOffice!).
And third, people ARE slowly moving to get away from M$! Great.