eBay music store?
p2pnet.net News:- If you need further proof that digital downloads are where it’s at, here it is:
eBay is the latest company looking to cash in on the online music phenomenon.
***Digital Downloads Category: Pilot for Digital Downloads Coming Soon*** it says on its site, going on:
“eBay is conducting a 180-day pilot in the Music category with pre-approved sellers of downloadable digital music files,” it states on its site.
The most important question is, of course: Will indies be allowed to offer music on eBay (see below)?
“During the pilot, only pre-approved sellers will be able to list in eBay’s Digital Downloads category. After 180 days we will evaluate the pilot and determine whether to enable other copyright owners or resellers of downloadable media to list in eBay’s Digital Downloads category if they meet certain criteria that will ensure copyright protection, service level agreements and safety, etc.
“Approved sellers in this pilot have represented to eBay that they are the rights owner or have contractual permission from the rights owner to resell the listed media. Downloads bought through eBay will take place in the secure environment of the seller. During the checkout process, the buyer may be redirected to a separate, branded and secure site to complete the transaction and to download the purchased music.”
- What does ‘pre-approved’ mean, exactly?
- Exactly what are the “certain criteria” copyright owners or resellers will have to meet?
- Will indies be able to use the service?
- If indies are ‘approved’ as sellers, who’ll make the decision and on what will it be based?
- Which (if any) of the Big Five record labels have been approached?
- Has Big Music’s RIAA (Recording Industry Associaiton of America) anything to say on the subject?
- What will buyers have to do to get onto the “separate, branded and secure” site?
And so on.
We have a call in so watch this space.
[Are you paying attention, Hollywood?]
July 16th, 2004 at 5:07 pm
Right. Ebay own paypal. Enter paypal into your favorite search and follow your nose.
July 16th, 2004 at 10:04 pm
Big Music has always been willing to fight tooth and nail any potential challenge to its monopoly on the *cough* legal distribution of music, and the only kind of system they will allow is one in which BM is in complete control of the process. Expect high prices and price-fixing. In addition, there’s bound to be some additional restrictive conditions – created by BM – that indies will be forced to operate under – that will put them at a competitive disadvantage.
And it should be a no-brainer that digital download resales will of course be prohibited in the foreseeable future.
Considering that a person can buy a used CD, keep it for awhile, and then resell it at close to the same cost, why would anyone want to buy pricier music downloads that cannot be resold?
Ebay offers a great opportunity for the industry to probe the market for the price elasticity of digital downloads, but there’s little chance the music industry will be interested in exploring this avenue.