p2pnet - rss feed: Apple maintains iTunes prices
p2p news / p2pnet: Apple will continue to charge $1 and up, depending in location, for iTunes downloads.
Differences with the members of the Big Four Organized Music cartel notwithstanding, the company has extended its distribution deals with them, says the Boston Globe.
Apple shares jumped 2.9 percent yesterday after the renewals were confirmed, says the story.
"The distribution contracts were up for renewal for the first time since iTunes launched in April 2003."
The Big Four labels make about 70 cents per download, "but could pocket significantly more if the prices were raised by a few cents," it adds.
Meanwhile, Warner Music, Vivendi Universal, EMI and Sony BMG will continue to try to sue their customers into buying inferior, over-priced downloads in a move Richard Sambrook, the BBC’s head of global news, has described as ill advised.
"Will the same happen when the European labels’ contracts come up for renegotiation, probably next year?" – wonders the Guardian Online.
Jupiter analyst Mark Mulligan, "thinks it might sour relations with other online retailers such as HMV and Virgin, which do offer variable pricing, if it does," says the story.
Also See:
Boston Globe - Apple’s iTunes downloads to stay at 99 cents a songs, May 3, 2006
Guardian Online - Does Apple, the labels or customers win if iTunes songs have a single price?, May 4, 2006
ill advised - Apple maintains iTunes prices, May 4, 2006
May 4th, 2006 at 1:42 pm
What a total sham, the media are buyuing into this and propping up Jobs as some kind of hero. Press release after press release, iTunes has gone from 1 million downloads to 1 billion and yet, the price remains at $0.99 when everyone knows free market dictates a decrease in cost with volume.
If Jobs had half the courage the media would have us believe, he would of told the cartels 1 billion downloads justifies lowering cost per unit and passing it on to consumers. Don’t get me wrong, Steve Jobs is a smart guy, it’s passing the cost reduction on to consumers I believe is not happening.
May 4th, 2006 at 3:17 pm
That way there can be real hell to pay for the Cartel gouging the non-US consumers more than they already are!
Then again, there is one simple solution I would think to the whole thing. Why not just use a proxy and buy from whatever store is the cheapest? Something of a dirty trick, but what the heck, they’re doing the same thing!
May 4th, 2006 at 3:50 pm
You see, that’s just another example of old business models trying to break the web to accomodate their dinosaur era profit schemes.
It’s called the WORLD WIDE WEB for fuck’s sake, what’s this bullshit nonsense of locking people out of online businesses by originating country? Let the world buy from iTunes.com and not some country specific store where 90% of the world is shut out.
May 4th, 2006 at 7:59 pm
Were are the songwriter organizations ASCAP, BMI and the foreign counterparts.
Are they not songwriter organizations / unions?
Why have they nothing to say on the matter on behalf of songwriters and the royalties they are to get from Apple?
May 4th, 2006 at 11:07 pm
WOW!!
May 5th, 2006 at 4:21 pm
Bearshare parent Free Peers is now owned by iMesh and paid 30 Million Dollars to the RIAA so does that mean p2pnet is now sponsored by the RIAA and a pay p2p service that p2pnet despises.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060505/ap_on_hi_te/downloading_music_2
May 5th, 2006 at 4:41 pm
“so does that mean p2pnet is now sponsored by the RIAA and a pay p2p service that p2pnet despises”
Why yes, yes it does. The next silly comment you should post is on RIAA’s website asking them why they sponsor a pro P2P file sharing site.