Best Buy Digital Music Store is latest to take on iTunes

Have you heard the big news? Best Buy, RealNetworks and SanDisk have teamed up to launch a new digital music store, powered by Real's Rhapsody 4.0 - doing their part to save digital music everywhere from extinction.

To help kick things off, ~~Puff Daddy~~ ~~Sean Combs~~ ~~Sean Puffy Combs~~ ~~Fuzzy Wuzzy~~ ~~P. Diddy~~ Diddy will be releasing an exclusive track from his new album for the launch, which is slated for October 15, 2006. Since you can't launch a digital music store without your own digital music player to play those freshly downloaded tracks on, the SanDisk Sansa e200R Rhapsody MP3 player (boy, that just rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?) is optimized to work "seamlessly" with the Best Buy Digital Music Store.

Before you go thinking all this glorious music is free, let me fill you in on the pricing. You get a free 2-month subscription to the music store when you buy a SanDisk Sansa, which will set you back $139 for the 2gig model and $249 for the 8gig model. The subscription is for unlimited tunes. The catch? If you don't sign up for a not-free subscription after 2 months, you won't be able to listen to those songs anymore. The basic subscription service will normally be priced at $14.99/month but you can also just "buy" individual tracks for 99 cents each, just like iTunes.

I don't know about you, but I prefer my digital music services and devices to have names I can pronounce and easy acronyms for when I'm feeling particularly lazy, so BBDMS + Rhapsody 4.0 + SDSe200RRMP3(p) = headache, whereas Apple + iTS + iPod = the true Best Buy.

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Source: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=pcmcat10240005000…

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Analysis / Opinion Audio iPod Family iTS iTunes

Have you heard the big news? Best Buy, RealNetworks and SanDisk have teamed up to launch a new digital music store, powered by Real's...

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Nabster

yes it may be gone, but this seriously not to be taken lightly. The Sansa player is in every way more powerful than the ipod. Seriously, it has a beautiful GUI, far more features than the ipod (fm radio & microphone built in) etc. And BestBuy should not be underestimated, majority of Americans think of BestBuy when they think of purchasing electronics, and those pushy salesmen can really get into the average american's pocket. For their job sakes, as instructed by management, they will pushing the Sansa over the iPod. I honestly think that people will pay monthly subscription fees over 99cents per track, its just more bang for ur buck. Unless u rarely buy digital music, theres no reason not to. I really think that iTMS should start thinkin bout this monthly plan.

Don't flame me ppl, i luv Apple. The lack of features on the iPod and the tight grip of Apple over everything is kinda getting to me. Not to mention when u play with a Sansa, u really wonder what the hell Jobs is waiting for.

October 09 2006 at 4:33 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Ralph

Three months, then it's gone.

October 08 2006 at 12:58 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

disapointed

Well so for this thing who's name I will not even attempt to utter, nor the Zune seem to relly have much of anything up on the iPod, but Apple might want to look to updating the iPods GUI as all these fun new toys come out to compete. People like flashy prettyness when it comes to that sort of thing, and Apple (amazingly) is slowly getting left behind.

October 08 2006 at 12:56 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Edsel

I think people are getting really tired of complex subscription plans like the ones cell phone carriers change every other month. You know darn well that the "Best Buy" $14.99 plan will morph and split into a $19.99, $10.99 & $8.99 plans with indecipherable rules and lengthy renewal periods.

The best approach is "KISS" = Keep It Simple Stupid = iTunes

October 08 2006 at 12:53 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

David

You neglected to mention that they have a purple Sansa available. And what's the difference between these Sansas and the ones Best Buy sold last week? Um...the box says Best Buy Digital Music Store on the front. So ya, real impressive. I may happen to work in the wireless department of a Best Buy.

October 08 2006 at 12:41 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply