Say what you will about the video quality of iTunes content, but it sure is convenient to download an episode or two of a show that you missed when it aired. The web elves that run the iTunes Store are determined to make it even more convenient it would seem, as they have gathered all the TV season finales available for purchase on one page [iTunes link]. Everything from American Dad to Battlestar Galatica is listed for your viewing pleasure. Be sure to check back because shows are going to be added daily.
Now if you'll excuse me, I need to find out if Sylar is stopped (warning, if you don't like spoilers I wouldn't click that Sylar link).
Back in January, episodes of the original Star Trek TV series were added to the US iTunes store. Then they disappeared, and now they're back again - two times over.
Specifically, the original first season [iTunes link], is listed separately from the digitally enhanced episodes from the same season [iTunes link]. We'd like to say that the former is for purists, and the latter for the more adventurous among us, but iTunes customers have left comments stating that both collections feature enhanced episodes.
If you want to relive that abysmal game for only $1.99US (it's a 22 minute video), just click here to be taken to the iTunes Store.
Now that the season is over, I wonder if that's the end of NFL content in iTunes? The Pro Bowl will be played this weekend, and the NFL Network (which has been providing content all along) will continue to broadcast, of course.
Blogger Chiggs at Torents examines the iTunes Store's impact on the environment, and it's a favorable one. The production of a single CD results in aluminum, nickel, dyes, polycarbonates and more. At this month's Macworld Expo, Steve Jobs announced that the iTunes Store had sold 2 billion songs. At an average of 12 tracks per disc, Chiggs figures, that's the equivalent of 166 million CDs worth of those dangerous materials. What's more, that many CDs would cover 1,050 miles when laid flat. That's quite a chunk of landfill.
He also considers the results of transporting all of those CDs by truck. It's certainly a good article, and worth your time. So buy your music from the iTunes store...and save a tree, hippie.
In case your synapses are still blown with iPhone, a quick trip back to the beginning of the keynote today: the iTunes Music Store has sold over two billion songs, and is now the fourth largest music retailer in the US, ahead of Amazon.com and sneaking up on #3 Target. So much for the faux slowdown...
Posted Dec 14th 2006 11:30AM by Erica Sadun Filed under: iTS
Web vendor jbox offers iTunes Japan Music Cards from its online site. With one of these cards you can make purchases at the Japan iTS. The cards obviously come at a slight premium. A 1500 yen card, which is worth just under $13 in real US money costs $18 at the site. A 3000 card, worth closer to $25, costs $35. That means that individual tracks, which would normally cost between $1.25 and $1.30 based on the Yen/US $ conversion rate, will set you back about $1.75 to $1.80. For the convenience and access to the foreign store, that's not too horrible a deal.
First Apple gave us one spot to get all those sweet, sweet free videos from the iTunes Music Store. Now, they have collected all the albums (do they still call them albums?) that are available for pre-order in one place. Apple has dubbed this page 'Tommorow's Hits Today,' which is kind of catchy.
The Associated Press says the writing is on the wall: either your music is available on iTunes or you're irrelevant. The article points out that several artists that were resistant to having their music available online have given in (and flagging CD sales aren't helping).
However, there are still holdouts including Kid Rock and the Beatles. Why don't they want consumers to have more options? There are many reasons, though the article cites:
Piracy (which CD's really don't stop)
Not wanting people to only buy one track (you must respect the album and not get the one good song without all the crappy ones)
Small profits from online sales
Will we see the Beatles catalog available on the iTunes Music Store? Perhaps when I'm 64 (get it? Aww, come on that was funny).
After I finished my last post I got to thinking (dangerous, I know): the iTunes Music Store name is hopelessly out of date. Let's think for a moment of all the things you can download from the iTMS:
Music
Music Videos
Television Shows
Short Films
If you include the podcasting section then the list is even longer:
PDF's
Video podcasts
Audio podcasts
So, while music is still a large part of the iTunes Music Store it is only a part. I think it is about time (Steve, are you listening?) that Apple rebrand the store. I'm thinking 'the iTunes Media Store,' because that why they wouldn't even need to get new monogrammed towels.
Readers, you are all far more clever than I: should Apple change the name of the iTunes Music Store? If so, what should they change it to? Have at it in the comments, I really want to know what folks think.
Forget the bluetooth Mighty Mouse, today's huge news is that Metallica's catalog has been added to the iTunes Music Store [iTunes link]. You may remember how vehemently anti-download this band has been since the Napster days. Either the guys have mellowed a bit (isn't that what this movie was about?) or they've seen the dollar signs. Either way, their music is available today.
When it comes to producing an iPod killer, Microsoft may finally be putting its (considerable) money where its mouth is. The company announced on Friday that a new line of portable media devices and online service, collectively known as "Zune," will target the iPod and iTunes Music Store. The hard drive-based devices will feature wifi connectivity and an option to purchase music all on their own. Also, it is said that Zune device users in the same hotspot will be able to browse and listen to one another's playlists.
We'll see which (if any) of these features actually see the light of day, but it sure sounds interesting.
Several new shows have been added to the US iTunes Music Store, including Blade: The Series (the first offering from the Spike network), TV Land's Sit Down Comedy with David SteinbergandViva La Bamfrom MTV, the show I'm obviously too old to "get." Check 'em out.
Apple has added music/video combo deals to the iTunes music store [iTunes link]. A new page has been set up that lets you buy either the song you're after for $0.99US or its accompanying video for $1.99US (as usual), or you can get both for $2.49US.
It's not huge news (I'm still waiting for the update that will bring all the Nike stuff), but it's there.
Seth Scoen, an EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) staff technologist, has an interesting blog post in which he analyzes some of the arguments surrounding DRM, Apple's role and how DRM affects the market in more ways than simply locking down content. He also hopes to remind those who have gone astray from the meat of the topic that getting caught up in the Mac vs. PC (and Apple vs. Microsoft) debates in the DRM world only serves to muddy the issue, much like many political debates get too caught up in 'Democrat vs. Republican' rivalry.
One of the more important arguments that Seth examines in terms of DRM as a whole and how it affects market competition is that of 'it's the record labels, not Apple who are to blame for the use of DRM'. Seth cites an EFF post from May, 2004 in which their own Fred von Lohmann wrote about his chance to ask the iTMS head lawyer as to whether Apple would stop using DRM if the record labels got really drunk one night lifted their requirement of it. The lawyer reportedly answered "no", which prompted Seth to remind us that DRM clearly isn't just about protecting content - it's also about protecting profitable and closed products like iTunes + iPod, and, perhaps even more importantly, Apple isn't the only one trying to do this.
Seth's post offers some interesting perspective on these DRM arguments, and it refreshingly delves deeper than the "Apple's solution is terrible which means you should use Microsoft's" banter. Check it out.
It sounds like those DefectiveByDesign guys were simply in the wrong place, but at the right time: Sweden has joined forces with Denmark and Norway to add fuel to the fire of pressuring Apple into opening up its FairPlay iTMS DRM system. A quote from a Swedish Consumer Agency spokeswoman dubs the iTMS ToS flat-out "illegal", and all three countries are threatening to take the case to their respective market courts.
DRM debates aside (which have been raging here over the last couple of posts), my money is on some music industry lobbyists making all this go away, as we saw when France tried this.
Say what you will about the video quality of iTunes content, but it sure is convenient to download an episode or two of a show that you missed when it aired. The web elves that run the iTunes Store are determined to make it even more convenient it would seem, as they have gathered all the TV season finales available for purchase on one page [iTunes link]. Everything from American Dad to Battlestar Galatica is listed for your viewing pleasure. Be sure to check back because shows are going to be added daily.
Back in January, episodes of the original Star Trek TV series were 
If you want to relive that abysmal game for only $1.99US (it's a 22 minute video), 
Are you paying attention, 
In case your synapses are still blown with 
First Apple gave us one spot to get all those sweet, sweet 
The Associated Press 
After I finished my 
Forget the 
When it comes to producing an iPod killer, Microsoft may finally be putting its (considerable) money where its mouth is. The company announced on Friday that a new line of portable media devices and online service, collectively known as "
Several new shows have been added to the US iTunes Music Store, including 
Apple has added music/video combo deals to the iTunes music store [
