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17 Jul 2009 09:49

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Music: eMusic finally gets a major label – but not without concession

  • What’s up? eMusic is one of those services that we’ve always heavily supported in part because its inexpensive, music-fan-first approach got the experience of downloading music right – even at the cost of major label support. Recently, it convinced one major, Sony, to jump on board. Good for them, right? Well, yes and no.
  • The cost It appears eMusic had to give up a lot to convince Sony to let them put Simon & Garfunkel on the site. Longtime users used to paying $20 for 90 tracks will be surprised to see their download numbers cut. And while the selection is killer, the company had to restrict some tracks – the hits – to flat-rate album download only.
  • Our takeWe won’t lie. In part because of the sheer novelty, we downloaded Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” ’cause we could. Ultimately, even with the changes, the service is still cheaper than most download sites. Our disappointment is that they bent so much for a major at the cost of the indies. We’re not sure if this is a good long-term approach. source

14 Apr 2009 10:36

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Tech: For some reason, Microsoft won’t stop making new Zunes

The internet is aflutter at these leaked photos of a HD Zune. Personally, we just don’t care anymore unless Lauren’s involved. source

11 Mar 2009 10:36

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Tech: The iPod Shuffle was already tiny. Did they have to make it smaller?

It talks now. And it’s twice as easy to lose as before. Good job, Apple. source

07 Jan 2009 10:20

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Music, Tech: Throw out everything you knew about iTunes

  • The changes afoot Apple, who despite their stranglehold on the digital music market has faced strong competition in the last year from the Amazon MP3 store, plans to stop selling music with digital rights management. Users will also be able to purchase songs using their iPhones over 3G data networks.
  • A changing price structure The most noticeable change to consumers will be the cost of a single song – Apple has long resisted moving from a price structure of 99 cents a song, but finally relented and will start selling music at two other price points – 69 cents and $1.29.
  • Other MacWorld highlightsPhil Schiller, who took the place of Steve Jobs at the company’s final MacWorld keynote, also revealed new versions of iWork and iLife and a 17-inch MacBook Pro to match the rest of their laptop line. All in all, kind of boring. source