Amazon Adds DRM-Free Warner Music

Time to go check what songs I can get now. :rolleyes:

Amazon has done a good job of making purchasing relatively seamless in OS X and Windows.

So what is it exactly that is stopping these labels from doing the same thing with iTunes? Is it the fear of Apple remaining so powerful in the music industry? Is Apple not offering the same $/song?

So what is it exactly that is stopping these labels from doing the same thing with iTunes? Is it the fear of Apple remaining so powerful in the music industry? Is Apple not offering the same $/song?

Amazon's pricing is the same or less than Apple's.

I think the music business sees Apple as a threat, and therefore doesn't want to play ball.

This of course, is BS. Apple is a reseller, just like Target and Wal Mart.

Unless you count the fact that the sell songs from unsigned artists. That doesn't make them a label, since they don't produce the music, and don't sell it on any medium other than download, but the "big boys" may feel otherwise.

For some reason, there are a number of indie records (as well as Universal and Warner) that does not provide DRM-less tracks on iTunes even though they sell such songs through Amazon or eMusic. Are these indie labels too lazy or do they have another reason? I have some songs on my wishlist that I am not in a hurry to buy, so I'll hold out a bit more to see if they become available on iTunes.

Assuming Amazon and iTunes offer the record companies the same price, the big ones are clearly trying to bury iTunes. Of course, if they succeed, it won't be long before they start forcing us to buy albums again or increase the prices of each song.

Amazon was already my primary online music store, and now they are getting close to replacing physical CDs.

Steve Jobs' prediction that by the end of 2007 more than half of all songs will be available DRM free has become true, just not on the iTS. And this in spite of the fact that Apple is giving EMI $0.99 per song (for DRM free) and Amazon AFAIR doesn't even always pay the previous standard rate of $0.69 per song.

This is worrying for Apple, OTOH you have to remember that at least for the mass market Amazon's MP3 store is about getting songs on the iPod troublefree, not getting off the iPod and buying a different player. A few informed customers will buy on Amazon because they disapprove of DRM, most customers would just buy there because they like Amazon or because it's a bit cheaper. At the same time many existing iTS customers will keep buying DRMed tracks on the iTS because they still work on the iPod and that's all that matters to them.

Therefore the iTS will remain the #1 store ahead of the Amazon MP3 Store for the foreseeable future, and with each passing quarter in which Amazon does not unseat Apple the record labels will be under more pressure to give Apple the same conditions Amazon received for DRM free tracks.

Labels have a problem because they would rather keep the savings made from digital distribution and packaging rather than pass them on to the customer amongst other reasons.

Well, I just gave this a go and it basically said "you're not in the US, go away". I don't understand why they (the labels) like to turn down potential purchasers and not get any money! I know that the regional distributors like to get their money too, but surely it's not *that* hard to record which country a song was downloaded in then reimburse the correct distributor for the song.

So what is it exactly that is stopping these labels from doing the same thing with iTunes? Is it the fear of Apple remaining so powerful in the music industry? Is Apple not offering the same $/song?

AAC

As long as Apple wants to promote their AAC standard, I guess the labels won't like it. Support for AAC is growing, but MP3 (though maybe inferior) is a de facto standard.

Simple fact: Most DVD-Players and CD-Players in cars can read MP3 but not AAC. I personally got back to MP3 encoding, as I like to have >100 songs on a CD and my car radio doesn't like AAC.