Apple is separating the new smartphones into its usual low-cost versus high-cost categories, with big differences between the two models coming down to the camera, display, and battery life.
iOS 13 & watchOS 6 Now Available
Apple Quietly Ends Free iTunes 'Single of the Week' Promotion After 11 Years
Apple has seemingly ended its weekly iTunes "Single of the Week" promotion that gave out a free music single download each week on the iTunes storefront. As noted by Business Insider, a member of the Apple discussion forums claims an Apple support employee informed him the company decided to drop the weekly promotion.
Volunteers in our forums have tracked the free iTunes Store content in several countries for a number of years, but the 2015 music thread remains empty as evidence of Apple's apparent decision to cancel the promotions.
I contacted iTunes Support and they told me the decision was made to drop the free Single of the Week. Seems they don't want people browsing the Store anymore. I told them that the free single each week got me to the Store and I usually bought a few songs. Now, there's less reason to go. They've stopped the free single in other countries too.The "Single of the Week" promotion began in 2004, and in a similar vein to Apple's "App of the Week" promotion on the App Store, it gave out free singles every week from artists and bands of varying genres and popularity. Though forum user Bob Foss' confirmation of the promotion's end remains unverified, Apple also recently decided to end its annual "12 Days of Christmas" iTunes Store giveaway.
Volunteers in our forums have tracked the free iTunes Store content in several countries for a number of years, but the 2015 music thread remains empty as evidence of Apple's apparent decision to cancel the promotions.
[ 154 comments ]
Top Rated Comments
(View all)
61 months ago
Apple is so damn greedy. It would be nice if they appreciated their customers.
Non-hardware examples;
No 12 days of Christmas. Not a huge deal but no real explanation behind it.
iTunes prices are ridiculous. Yes, they do sales occasionally. But I don't need all the Harry Potter movies for $55. I would like to see some older movies for less than $14.99 occasionally. Perhaps a price more competitive with Blu-Rays or Amazon.
$3.99 and $4.99 to rent a movie? For 24 hours? C'mon. That's ridiculous when there is a Redbox in every McDonalds in the US.
I really wanted to own a copy of The Prestige. I figured iTunes was an easy choice. Until the movie was $17.99. It's $9.99 on Blu-Ray.
I understand there is no need to push product since these files are not taking up any real estate but a sale or competitive prices would be nice.
We're all in the ecosystem, just throw us a bone with some incentives and real sales.
This is coming on the heals of an unfortunate incident last night in which I was unable to stream Capt America on my Apple TV (a movie I purchased on iTunes), but the Netflix app on my Apple TV worked fine. I just remember when it felt like Apple cared about their few customers instead of ripping off all of their customers.
/end rant
Non-hardware examples;
No 12 days of Christmas. Not a huge deal but no real explanation behind it.
iTunes prices are ridiculous. Yes, they do sales occasionally. But I don't need all the Harry Potter movies for $55. I would like to see some older movies for less than $14.99 occasionally. Perhaps a price more competitive with Blu-Rays or Amazon.
$3.99 and $4.99 to rent a movie? For 24 hours? C'mon. That's ridiculous when there is a Redbox in every McDonalds in the US.
I really wanted to own a copy of The Prestige. I figured iTunes was an easy choice. Until the movie was $17.99. It's $9.99 on Blu-Ray.
I understand there is no need to push product since these files are not taking up any real estate but a sale or competitive prices would be nice.
We're all in the ecosystem, just throw us a bone with some incentives and real sales.
This is coming on the heals of an unfortunate incident last night in which I was unable to stream Capt America on my Apple TV (a movie I purchased on iTunes), but the Netflix app on my Apple TV worked fine. I just remember when it felt like Apple cared about their few customers instead of ripping off all of their customers.
/end rant
61 months ago
They are probably sick of having to be insulted for giving out some little things for free.
61 months ago
With no "12 days of Christmas" and now this, they must be saving up to be making the 12" Macbook Air real affordable ;)
61 months ago
I used to download the free songs, but after a while realized that I almost never liked the songs, rated them as 1 star and lost them in my library. It's been a year or so since I even thought of the free song. I wonder if this is also true for many other users rendering the freebie no longer essential. I also wonder how Apple was compensating the artist and if there is some issue in the contracts. My final wonder of this morning is how the streaming has affected the need for a free song as a way to discover new music/artists.
I wonder a lot.
I wonder a lot.
61 months ago
In all these years, I only got 3 free singles... and the unwanted U2 album (but that wasn't my choice). So, it's not something I'm going to miss.
Too bad for those artists trying to get more attention, I think that's the only downside.
Too bad for those artists trying to get more attention, I think that's the only downside.
61 months ago
Aww. Got a lot of neat songs in this promotion that lead to me buying the album, and the album after, and the album after, etc.
Hopefully Starbucks still does theirs.
Hopefully Starbucks still does theirs.
61 months ago
No 12 days of Christmas. Not a huge deal but no real explanation behind it.
Check out some of the content that has been in 12 days 2013 and you might understand the reason.
People were rating these apps/movies/books/songs with 1 star because they didn't like them.
I think that entitlement mentality is what has killed these promotions.
Getting free stuff is no longer enough. It must be exactly what you want.
61 months ago
Didn't they spend $100 million on giving out U2's album for free?
That's probably what killed it.
Thanks, Bono. Thanks from the artists who could have used the exposure, too.
That's probably what killed it.
Thanks, Bono. Thanks from the artists who could have used the exposure, too.
[ Read All Comments ]
Burst Mode refers to when the camera on your iPhone captures a series of photos in rapid succession, at a rate of ten frames per second. It's a great way to shoot an action scene or an unexpected...
Apple's Portrait Mode has become a popular way of taking impressive shots using a depth-of-field effect known as bokeh, allowing iPhone users to shoot a photo that keeps the subject sharp with a...
Apple has redesigned the native Camera app on the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro to make space for the various additional shooting options available in its new flagship phones, and one particularly...
Apple's massive launch week has come to a close, with the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, and Apple Watch Series 5 all debuting on Friday. And as if that wasn't enough, Thursday...
With the arrival of the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max, Apple has introduced an optional new camera feature in iOS 13 that's designed to allow you to correct the alignment of...
For this week's giveaway, we've teamed up with AnyTrans to offer MacRumors readers a chance to win one of Apple's new iPhone 11 Pro Max devices and a lifetime AnyTrans license.
For...
Due to Apple seeding the iOS 13.1 beta prior to the public release of iOS 13, upgrading to a new iPhone may be a bit trickier this year.
In a support document, Apple has provided instructions...
Apple today the golden master version of an upcoming tvOS 13 update to developers, one week after seeding the eleventh beta and more than three months after unveiling the tvOS 13 software at the...
