Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, iPod Family, iTS, iTunes, Apple
Complete My Album is selling music
I was just as much a naysayer as Dave was when the service first came out (and for the record, I haven't used it all either), but apparently there are lots of people who do use Apple's "Complete My Album" service in iTunes -- the NYT says that it has become a prime selling tool, especially for bands and labels that pre-release singles from their album in a digital format. A whopping 52% of Lil Wayne's latest album sales on iTunes were sold through the "Complete My Album" feature. That means half the people who bought the album on iTunes had previously purchased one of the singles, and clicked through that way to buy the rest of their music.And though neither Dave or I use "Complete My Album," that's a good sign for consumers, and a nice wake up call for the record industry -- the days of playing a song on the radio to up album sales are over. Digital releases are what sells music, and though "Complete My Album" currently only works on music previously purchased in the iTunes store, Apple could very easily extend that to all music in iTunes -- if you like a song that you've downloaded as a free single from the artist's website, it's just as easy to find music of theirs to buy in iTunes the same way.
We're done with a world where radio airplay determines what sells at the record store. These days, consumers are the ones who tell record makers what they want to buy -- it's already in their iTunes playlists.


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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Balls said 7:43PM on 6-30-2008
The article fails to mention that 100% of the people that purchase music from "Lil Wayne" are retards.
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Hobbes said 7:55PM on 6-30-2008
As are those that do not respect other people's tastes.
chrisvanhorn said 9:54PM on 6-30-2008
Balls, I'm curious.
What bands/groups do you like?
austin said 11:12PM on 6-30-2008
as much as i hate rap/hip-hop, i absolutely love lil wayne
Simon Arch said 11:46PM on 6-30-2008
Obviously he only likes quality music. Like Fiddy and T-Pain.
Balls said 11:48AM on 7-01-2008
So someone who hates Rap loves lil-wayne...go figure.
And no, my favorite groups are Culture Club, Abba, and the Kenny G.
Kyle Derouen said 8:08PM on 6-30-2008
You suck.
Lil Wayne is ballin.
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Andy said 8:34PM on 6-30-2008
Hobbes, actually, that one likes Lil Wayne is proof positive that one has no taste.
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mmendoza27 said 10:58PM on 6-30-2008
C'mon give me a break, he sold 1 million records the first week of the CD being released, some of the tracks being leaked out. Apparently, people do like his music.
Tell us what music you like, I could easily say it sucks, but it's what you are into, I could honestly care less if it sucks or not.
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Bioretention said 11:18PM on 6-30-2008
It's a good concept, but until the album makes a comeback, it's only going to have modest success.
http://www.filterra.com
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kleinias said 1:57AM on 7-01-2008
"We're done with a world where radio airplay determines what sells at the record store. These days, consumers are the ones who tell record makers what they want to buy -- it's already in their iTunes playlists."
I don't have a much knowledge of what influences people to purchase music. Having said that, I'm not sure that what I just read is a plausible argument. what influences people to purchase the initial music for their playlist? Isn't radio airplay one of the primary factors.
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washington irving said 2:40AM on 7-01-2008
of all the people supporting lil wayne against insults how many are making more than 7 dollars an hour?
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TheH2s said 7:50AM on 7-01-2008
Didn't know that trolls are at the Mac blog too. Weird, I guess they are everywhere.
Anyway, I haven't used the Complete an Album yet but will be. I picked up Viva La Vida and plan on buying the rest of the album.
I think it's an awesome idea actually. I for one am glad iTunes has this. I think it will get people to buy more albums. It certainly can't hurt.
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h8rain said 9:20AM on 7-01-2008
I really don't like that song for the same reason I don't like Nickelback........OVERPLAYED. I listen to XM at work, and Lollipop is played between the two stations I listen to, at least 4-5 times a days.
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