Napster reports Q2 loss
p2p news / p2pnet: Organized Music’s IFPI (International Federation of Phonographic Industry) claims the online music business is booming with 300 sites offering downloads.
However, that’s crap. The world has only heard of about three of the corporate pages – RealNetworks’ RealPlayer, Napster and Apple’s iTunes. And of those, only iTunes, promo software for iPod more than an actual music store, can be said to be doing any business, although now Real has scored from Microsoft, it may be able to fix its player beset, as it’s been, by apparently endless critical security holes.
But the lashings of free PR dished out by the ever-faithful mainstream media and repeated cash injections notwithstanding, Napster is in trouble. Again.
"Online music service Napster Inc on Wednesday posted a narrower second-quarter loss, helped by subscriber growth," says Reuters, not explaining how a "loss" can be helped by "growth".
"Napster posted a net loss of US$13.6 million, or 32 US cents a share, compared with a net loss of US$15.3 million, or 44 US cents per share in the year-ago quarter," it says.
"Revenues of US$23.4 million compared with US$9.3 million. Analysts on average had forecast Napster to post a second quarter loss of 47 US cents and revenues of US$21.7 million."
Napster is among corporate firms trying to convince punters that it makes sense rent music downloads for a monthly fee.
The problem is, once these ’subscription’ payments cease, the music dies. Quite literally. Users can no longer access the libraries they’ve painstakingly created, or play digital tracks on the software they’ve installed.
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See:-
300 sites – IFPI reports booming business, October 4, 2005
critical security holes – Real gets $761M from Microsoft, October 11, 2005
Reuters – Napster posts second-quarter loss, November 3, 2005
November 3rd, 2005 at 3:02 pm
“The problem is, once these ’subscription’ payments cease, the music dies. Quite literally. Users can no longer access the libraries they’ve painstakingly created, or play digital tracks on the software they’ve installed. ”
Not only that,
If Napster goes “under”, a subscriber will not only …
“Own Nothing”
They will also HAVE nothing.
( Props to Napster’s new ad campaign ..
“Own Nothing”
“Have Everything”, what a joke )
Dreddsnik.
November 3rd, 2005 at 8:39 pm
Maybe they could save money by stopping their advertising? People know what Napster is
November 4th, 2005 at 1:22 am
Not really.
People know what Napster WAS.
Now, it’s junk.
November 4th, 2005 at 3:00 am
There is something fundimentally wrong with that concept.