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Apple Is Now the #1 US Music Retailer
Quantrell writes "A leaked e-mail shows that Apple hit the #1 spot for music sales in January. The article speculates that consumers cashing in their holiday gift cards may have played a role; but of course Wal-Mart and the other retailers sold gift cards too. The news is a mixed bag for the record labels. 'For the music industry, there is a dark side to Apple's ascension to the top of the charts. Buying patterns for digital downloads are different, as customers are far more likely to cherry pick a favorite track or two from an album than purchase the whole thing. In contrast, brick-and-mortar sales are predominantly high-margin CDs.'" We recently discussed Wal-Mart's role in the music business, back when they were selling nearly 20% of US music. For January Apple was at 19% and Wal-Mart at 15%.
i say "one future of music distribution" because i am also leaning towards this idea
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The only reason apple don't offer all their music without DRM is because the record companies won't let them. They are allowing amazon to have DRM free music in order to try and reduce apple's marketshare and thus reduce apple's chips at the negotiation table with the record companies.
Not so much a mixed bag as it is further evidence that the RIAAs business model is flawed.
Here they have the worlds largest brick-and-mortar store and the most influential online music retailers moving ungodly units of their crappy products and still they cry poverty.
Apparently the concept of the market rejecting DRM is overblown?
The more you regulate a company, the worse its products become.
"It will be like going back to pre taping life where only special people with expensive equipment could make and sell recordings."
No, no it won't.
You or I can still make recordings and distribute them with or without DRM if we wish.
It'll just mean we can't (easily) make copies.
I agree, it's a worse situation than what we have now, but it's not like pre-taping days in that the tools are available to all to distribute media.
You should be thankful for Apple and the fact that they are #1. It's because of Apple that the labels have allowed Amazon to sell MP3's without any kind of DRM whatsoever. If Apple had never gotten such a stranglehold on the digital marketplace, most of the labels would have never allowed Amazon to sell DRM free music. I'm glad that Apple is where it is and I hope that people continue to buy music from them. I won't be among them but as long as Apple keeps doing what it's doing, the labels will allow Amazon and others to sell music without DRM as a counterweight and smart consumers will be able to purchase legit, DRM free music.
Please. Remember Apple, like Walmart, is a reseller. They have to abide by the vendor (music labels) on their product. One of the restrictions of Apple reselling is that they have to use DRM for music the labels insist on having DRM. If Apple was so keen on locking you into their product, they wouldn't be selling DRM free tracks at all, and the iPod wouldn't play AAC or MP3. In fact, they would have created their own proprietary music format instead of extending AAC to include DRM. I wonder which company would do that?
Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
Also, don't forget that a lot of advertising costs can probably be saved using the iTunes store. Consumers get to try before they buy, find tracks similar to ones they already have, and so on. it's not just cost savings related to manufacturing, shipping, and retail space.
Have you heard of iTunes Plus? No? Then investigate it and then kindly STFU.
Last I checked that other company would license their embedded codec with DRM to any manufacturer. Name one player besides Apple's that plays iTMS protected AAC.
Apple sells DRM free tracks. But how many people do you know that buy from iTMS that have a DRM free collection? Even if you bought just one DRMed album, you'd have to keep using Apple's products to maintain that investment.
Don't get me wrong. I have an iPod. But I refuse to buy from iTMS. I'd rather give the same money to Amazon and get my tracks in plain unencumbered MP3.
The problems with kids like you today, is that you can't be bother to find out anything for yourself so you just regurgitate what you hear from your friends.
If Apple licenced their DRM it would only have the affect of PROMOTING it. Look what's happening now - more and more tacks on iTMS are drm FREE, and will work with any music player you want.
lemonade was a popular drink and it still is