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itunes-store posts

Filed under: iTS, Multimedia, iTunes, Apple, Music

Apple launches iTunes Preview for external browser links

by Mike Schramm (RSS feed) on Nov 13th, 2009

This is the kind of thing that probably should have been done a long time ago, but Macworld is reporting that Apple has launched iTunes Preview, a page that appears when you click an iTunes link (like this one) and your browser sends you over to iTunes. Previously, you just got that placeholder page that said "One Moment Please" and asked if you wanted to open the link in an external application, but with iTunes Preview, you get a nicely laid out page with information and reviews (and your browser still opens up the iTunes store).

Currently it only seems to work with music -- movies and television only get a small thumbnail, and applications get the same old gray page. But that'll probably change before long -- it's much smoother to see what you're clicking through to, and of course there's the added bonus for people who don't actually have iTunes installed. As MacWorld points out, there are actually no "preview" buttons on the page -- you can't listen to music there, only click through to the iTunes store. But like I said, it's better than a blank window and a browser popup asking for your permission. I wouldn't be surprised at all to see this grow a lot more in the future.

Tags: apple, features, information, itunes, itunes store, itunes-store, ItunesStore, listen, macworld, movies, music, preview, release

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, iTS, Video, iTunes

Apple: NBC's pricing hasn't changed

by Mike Schramm (RSS feed) on Sep 12th, 2008

Here's the final humiliation for NBC in the whole contest between it and Apple -- while one of NBC's execs claimed that Apple made some concessions to the network to get Peacock content back in the iTunes store (after it was unceremoniously pulled last year over pricing arguments), Apple just plain says that's not true -- there were no concessions, and NBC crawled back on its own.

Sure, it's a little high school of Apple to call NBC out like that, but it's not like NBC has been gracefully handling the whole thing either -- execs have whined and moaned the whole time that they don't like the iTunes model, and even threatened to go to Amazon for good. But in the end, making Apple's money won out over making no money at all. Even though NBC brass are still convinced that Apple is giving them ground on pricing (and on the pricing of DVD movies), Apple says that's not the case -- the pricing structure has been the same all along.

At any rate, it's the consumer that wins -- no matter what Apple's prices are, at least NBC content is back in the iTunes store for those willing to pay for it.

[via Daring Fireball]

Tags: apple, dvds, hd, itunes, itunes-store, nbc, pricing, tv-shows

Filed under: iTS

iTunes movies come to Canada as well

by Scott McNulty (RSS feed) on Jun 4th, 2008

UK readers aren't the only ones who can now purchase and rent movies via iTunes, Canadian readers will be happy to note they can get in on the fun as well. Interestingly the viewing period for rentals in Canada also lasts for 48 hours, which leads me to believe that the US window will also increase (though we have no information to confirm that).

The Canadian store has over 1,200 movies to buy, 200 of which you can rent. The pricing is as follows:
  • CAN$9.99 to purchase catalog titles
  • CAN$14.99 to get recently released movies
  • CAN$19.99 to purchase new movies
  • CAN$3.99 for renting a library title (a dollar more for HD)
  • CAN$4.99 for new release rental (a dollar more for HD)
Thanks to everyone who sent this in.

Update: I assumed you all knew I meant 'UK reader's when I said 'Japanese readers' in the first sentence. I blame the overwhelming excitement of this news. The error has been corrected.

Tags: canada, its, itunes, itunes-store, movie-rental, movies

Filed under: iTS

Radiohead returns to iTunes

by Erica Sadun (RSS feed) on Jun 3rd, 2008

If you haven't been keeping track of the whole Radiohead/iTunes drama it went something like this TUAW summary:

iTunes: "You must sell the tracks"

RH: "We won't sell the tracks!"

iTunes: "You must sell the tracks"

RH: "We won't sell the tracks!"

iTunes: "Then don't sell the tracks!"

RH: "We are so out of here. Whole albums or nothing baby."

iTunes: "Laters."

Time passes

iTunes: "You must sell the tracks"

RHEvil Suit-Wearing EMI Folk: "Well...okay then."

RH: Curses! Foiled again!

Radiohead albums (including individual track sales) are now available for purchase at iTunes.

Thanks, Clancy

Tags: its, itunes, itunes-store, Radiohead

Filed under: iTS

iTunes Video Stores coming to France

by Erica Sadun (RSS feed) on May 28th, 2008

Over at MacGeneration, Christophe Laporte and his friends have discovered a nearly-live French iTunes Video Store. If you'd like to check it out yourself, search the store for "desperate" and click on Les Saisons TV.

France will join the UK and Germany with transatlantic video stores. Episode pricing falls between €1,99 and €2,49, which is pretty steep given the strength of the Euro. More details and pictures are here.

Tags: Expensive, French, itunes, itunes-store, Retail, Store, Video

Filed under: iTS, iTunes

HBO just added to iTunes, some episodes cost $2.99

by Scott McNulty (RSS feed) on May 13th, 2008

That was quick. Just yesterday I wrote about the rumored addition of HBO shows to the iTunes Store and today they show up on iTunes. The following HBO shows are now available on iTunes, though some of the episodes cost more than $1.99:
Episodes of the Sopranos, Rome, and Deadwood all cost $2.99 while the rest of the series are priced at the typical $1.99. Looks like Apple is a little more open to flexible pricing on television shows than they used to be.

Thanks, howie.

Tags: hbo, itunes, itunes-store

Filed under: iTS, iTunes

HBO might be coming to iTunes, with flexible pricing

by Scott McNulty (RSS feed) on May 12th, 2008

Portfolio.com is reporting that you might soon be able to find Tony Soprano in the iTunes Store. HBO, the premium cable channel known for its original programming, is in talks with Apple to add HBO programming to the iTunes Store.

This is good news for fans of HBO shows, but the real story here is the deal that HBO has reportedly managed to wrangle out of Apple. Portfolio's sources say that Apple has agreed to flexible pricing for HBO, which might mean we'll have to pay more than $1.99 per episode for that content. This is the structure that NBC, and many other studios, would love but Apple has been resistant to it in the past.

Before you go crazy, please note that flexible pricing might mean something other than paying more for the shows: Apple might give HBO a bigger cut of the profits from the flat $1.99. Only time will tell, since HBO insiders say that HBO's inclusion in the iTunes Store will be announced and launched at the same time.

Note: HBO and TUAW both have the same corporate overlords, but that doesn't mean we have any inside information.

Tags: aol-time-warner, hbo, itunes, itunes-store

Filed under: iTS, Apple

iTunes Store adds genre drop-down for music

by Scott McNulty (RSS feed) on Mar 30th, 2008

The iTunes Store contains podcasts, TV shows, movies, audiobooks, and iPod games so it is easy to forget (for the sake of this post at least) that it also offers a wide array of music. Apple has recently added a new 'Genres' dropdown to the iTunes Store navigation, so you can find what you're looking for even faster.

And to those snarky commenters out there: yes, it is Sunday which by its very nature is a slow news day.

Thanks, Toren

Tags: itunes, itunes store, itunes-store, ItunesStore

Filed under: Macworld, Analysis / Opinion, iTS, iTunes

Renting a movie in iTunes

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Jan 16th, 2008

Five years ago, my wife and I often rented movies. "I think I'll get a movie on the way home from work," I'd think. It was spontaneous and simple. Then it happened.

We had children.

To say that parenthood is life-changing is like saying the sun is hot. While we were busily trying to keep a brand new human being alive (incidentally, there's no manual -- not even a supplement from Pogue -- the UI stinks and unexpected core dumps are frequent), anything as trivial as bringing home a copy of Dumb & Dumber fell off the radar completely.

I miss the simplicity of watching a movie minutes after realizing I'd like to, and being rid of it when I'm through. Since we abandoned the brick-and-mortar video store, that scenario has eluded us.

Continue reading “Renting a movie in iTunes”

Tags: itunes, itunes-store, macworld08, movies, rentals

Filed under: iPod Family, iTS, iTunes, iPhone

Gear Live reviews Starbucks on Wi-Fi iTunes

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Oct 2nd, 2007

Today is October 2nd, the official launch of the Wi-Fi iTunes Store for Starbucks in Seattle and New York City. The folks at Gear Live live in Seattle, and were among the first to try the new service.

It seems to work well. Upon launching iTunes on a laptop, they were automatically connected with full access to the iTunes Store (Plus some additional Starbucks content). A prominent "currently playing track" banner is updated dynamically, and the ten most recently played tracks are a click away.

They had similar luck with an iPhone. The Starbucks logo was in place in the Wi-Fi iTunes store, and clicking it displayed the same content as the laptop version.

If you're in Seattle or New York, please share your experiences. The rest of us can only wait.

[Via MacDailyNews]

Tags: iphone, ipod, ipod-touch, itunes, itunes-store, starbucks

Filed under: Apple Corporate, iTS, iTunes

New NBC shows are in iTunes Store (sort of)

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Sep 26th, 2007

Update: As our commenters have pointed out, the two premieres now appearing in the iTunes store -- although broadcast by NBC in the US -- are actually produced by other studios such as Fox and Warner Brothers. Since the online distribution rights are separate from the broadcast rights, it would seem that the content owners are more than happy to have their shows sold in iTunes. Unfortunately for fans of Heroes, Law & Order, The Office and 30 Rock, all those shows are produced by NBC/Universal and they are, as expected, not updating with the current season's content.

Original post: When NBC announced their intention to pull their content from the US iTunes Store by December, Apple promised to make that happen much sooner:

"Apple has decided to not offer NBC TV shows for the upcoming television season beginning in September."

A few hours later, NBC stated that their new shows will be available in the US iTunes Store. Today, I found Journeyman [iTunes link] and Chuck [iTunes link], two brand new shows, ready to go. I bet other hits like My Name is Earl and The Office, which premiere on Thursday night, will also be posted.

Why? I imagine a boardroom conversation that sounded something like this:
  • NBC Exec. A: Heh. We showed them. We'll make a bundle on the new stuff and then, bam! We slam the door in December. Cha-ching!
  • NBC Exec. B: Um, sir? They're going to pull all of our stuff immediately. No new shows.
  • NBC Exec. A: *Wilhelm scream* B-But, they can't do that.
  • NBC Exec. B: It's done, sir.
  • NBC Exec. A: Damn. Get Jobs on the phone.
Thanks to everyone who sent this in.

Tags: chuck, itunes, itunes-store, journeyman, nbc

Filed under: Apple Corporate, iTunes

Apple issues iTunes Store credits

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Sep 20th, 2007

The Apple Blog is reporting that Apple has begun issuing Apple Store credit for customers who had trouble getting songs last week.

It seems that several customers were unable to download purchased songs, despite having provided a valid credit card number. Specifically, Apple has issued an email that reads,

"Please accept the following Five Song Credits as an apology for the delay in receiving your purchase. These credits are good for five songs of your choice from the iTunes Store."

Have any of you received this message, or made use of your credits?

Tags: itunes, itunes-rebate, itunes-store, itunes-store-credit

Filed under: iTS, iTunes, Apple, iPhone

iPhone $100 credit can be used for iTunes gift cards

by Scott McNulty (RSS feed) on Sep 15th, 2007

Chris Tutor, from our sister blog Autoblog, emailed us a link to this Bloomberg article about the $100 iPhone credit (you have yours, right?). The first thing many people wanted to know about the credit was, 'Can I buy stuff from the iTunes store with it?' A quick look at the FAQ would make you think this is not possible, but Bloomberg spoke with an Apple rep who clarified the whole thing.

Here's the lowdown: you can't apply the $100 credit directly to your iTunes account, but you can swagger into any Apple Store, or log onto the online store, and buy yourself a $100 (or less) iTunes Gift Card. The only question that remains is, what are you going to spend all that loot at iTunes?

Update: Several people in the comments, and on other blogs, wrote me to let me know that this post is just plain wrong. It is not incorrect, the iPhone credit can be used for iTunes Gifts Cards NOT iTunes electronic gift certificates. I just purchased a $25 gift card from the online Apple store using my credit.

Tags: apple, iphone, iphone-credit, itunes, itunes-store

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