Universal Backs Free Music Rival to iTunes

[Ksyrup]

Glad to see there are at least some alternatives being considered.





August 29, 2006

Universal Backs Free Music Rival to iTunes


Universal Music, the world's largest music company, has agreed to back a new venture that will allow consumers to download songs for free and instead rely on advertising for its revenues.

The new service, known as SpiralFrog, represents a departure from the 99-cent per-song business model made popular by Apple's iTunes store. It will begin operations in December.

Universal's support reflects music companies' willingness to experiment as they try to capture some profit from the boom in digital distribution, which is still dominated by illegal file-sharing networks.

In spite of iTunes' popularity, a report released last month by the International Federation of Phonographic Industries revealed that there are still roughly 40 illegal downloads for every legal one as consumers continue to flock to peer-to-peer networks.

"Offering young consumers an easy-to-use alternative to pirated music sites will be compelling," said Robin Kent, who is SpiralFrog's chief executive and the former head of the Universal McCann advertising agency. "SpiralFrog will offer those consumers a better experience and environment than they can get from any pirate site."

Customers will be able to download an unlimited number of Universal songs to their computer and one other device. They will not be able to transfer those songs onto a compact disc, and they must visit the site at least once a month to maintain access to their music.

Mr Kent has held discussions with the three other major labels – Warner, EMI and Sony-BMG – and is hoping that they will be lured by the surge in online advertising. Merrill Lynch last week upped its forecast for the sector's growth, predicting that it would expand by 35 per cent this year in non-US markets to $11.6bn as companies follow young consumers onto the internet. In the US, growth is expected to be
Perry Ellis, the fashion company, has said it will advertise on SpiralFrog, while Levi's, Benetton, Aeropostale and others have expressed interest. "Our audience is heavily into music and can be more easily reached on the web," said Oscar Feldenkreis, president of Perry Ellis International.

Other music services have also begun to embrace an advertising-supported model. The new Napster, for example, allows consumers to listen to up to five tracks for free while they view advertising. Meanwhile, video sharing sites, such as YouTube, have held talks with music companies about showing music videos, which would then be supported by advertising.

At the heart of these ventures is the proposition that young consumers will be willing to endure advertising as the price for their music. Mr Kent said that his research revealed that they were receptive as long as the brands and products were relevant to the audience.

[Easy Mac]

so its like Yahoo only $5 cheaper? i give it 10 minutes until somone hacks together program to autoping the site each month.

[Draft Dodger]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Customers will be able to download an unlimited number of Universal songs to their computer and one other device. They will not be able to transfer those songs onto a compact disc, and they must visit the site at least once a month to maintain access to their music.

I was interested right up until this point. Still, like you said, it's nice that they are at least thinking a little bit outside the box.

[Easy Mac]

Why would you want inferior sounding audio on a cd?

[Easy Mac]

oh, and the whole subscription model has been hacked anyway. Hell, if I pay $12.95 a month, I should be able to put it on whatever player I want.

From engadget
So far as the yet very quiet forums are claiming, a new app called FairUse4WM can be used to strip Windows Media DRM 10 and 11 (i.e. PlaysForSure, but not WM DRM 9). Yes, yes, we know, we've heard this song and dance before. But before we proceed, let's just be totally clear on how the system works: providers like Napster and Yahoo Music Unlimited provide subscription service for unlimited access to Windows Media DRMed files; stop paying the fee, stop getting access to the files -- but you already knew all this. We tried FairUse4WM and we can verify that it quickly and easily stripped the DRM from our Napster To Go tracks, and made them freely available to play on our Mac (which, of course, has Flip4Mac installed). In other words, it's a simple, apparently lossless, one-step method for making your files playable after you're no longer paying fees on your subscription service. The app didn't work on our Vongo videos, but we can verify with all certainty that yes, Windows Media DRM can now be easily and quickly stripped from PlaysForSure media services. Now watch as Microsoft shuts down the forums and runs damage control in order to prevent an digital media entire platform from collapsing. Click on for a couple more pics of the app in action!

[SirFozzie]

trying to take some market share back from Itunes so Itunes can't resist their pricing scheme (variable pricing, 99 cents the LOWEST, hotter tunes costing up to double more)next time around..

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by Draft Dodger

I was interested right up until this point. Still, like you said, it's nice that they are at least thinking a little bit outside the box.

iTunes doesn't allow you to transfer it onto a CD and other mp3's. That's why they didn't win my business when I purchased a Phillips mp3 player. Apple has created a cult of of sorts with the iPod and iTunes program through very smart marketing. Personally, I find the products overpriced and the pricing and restrictions of iTunes terrible.

[SirFozzie]

Um.. yes iTunes does.. the only limitation is that you can't burn the same playlist more then 5 times. And it's fairly easy to convert them to MP3.. burn to CD, rip back from CD.. Poof!

[rkmsuf]

the world was so much simplier when we just had 45s and a record player

[Easy Mac]

You can transfer Itunes songs to CDs. It quite easy. You click the burn button on the top right corner. Itunes is one of the less restrictive services out there (aside from emusic).

[Easy Mac]

Originally Posted by SirFozzie

Um.. yes iTunes does.. the only limitation is that you can't burn the same playlist more then 5 times. And it's fairly easy to convert them to MP3.. burn to CD, rip back from CD.. Poof!

THere are other ways, from engadget (links removed)
Remember Hymn? You should, back in the day (like, um, 2004) it allowed you to strip the FairPlay DRM right off iTunes Music Store bought files just like that; well, it's been a long time in coming, but a new app called QTFairUse6 looks like it can now be used (with some amount of difficulty) to dump iTunes version 6.0.4 - 6.0.5 files of their chastely protection. It's not quite as slick as FairUse4WM or anything, but if you're not afraid to get your hands dirty with a little python up in this piece, you can get yours now; if not, it shouldn't be too long before our man Igor S.'s next-gen method for circumventing Apple's copy protection methods makes its way into a nice, neat little graphical interface all the Macs in the house are sure to adore. And, of course, then it's not too much longer after that when Apple blocks out this hack of Hymn and moves on to the next FairPlay iteration. DRM man, it's like a freaking möbius strip of consumer hurt.

[Easy Mac]

Originally Posted by rkmsuf

the world was so much simplier when we just had 45s and a record player

well i had an 8 track player, and my records wouldn't play on that, so i should just get the 8 track version for free.

[Ksyrup]

Yeah, this model doesn't interest me, either. I still need/want CDs. Even if I burn them, they still sound better in my car because they don't have to be run through the tape deck (or FM transmitter). I've tried the same MP3 files burned to disc and on my Zen Micro in the car and the difference is huge.

[cthomer5000]

Originally Posted by Easy Mac

You can transfer Itunes songs to CDs. It quite easy. You click the burn button on the top right corner. Itunes is one of the less restrictive services out there (aside from emusic).

I love emusic, been a member over a year. At this point I'm honestly having a hard time finding enough stuff to burn my downloads on each month.

[Maple Leafs]

People won't like this. There are two laws of the internet that are constant:
- People will claim that they only take something for free because there isn't a reasonable way to pay for it
- Any way to pay for it will be instantly deemed unreasonable

Repeat, etc.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Lemme see here ... .99 cents for something I know I actually want versus a barrage of ads that have virtually zero connection to me.

I'm going with the former.

[Raiders Army]

Is this model anything different from the radio other than you can't burn the songs to CDs and you have to reconnect every month?

[Galaril]

Originally Posted by Raiders Army

Is this model anything different from the radio other than you can't burn the songs to CDs and you have to reconnect every month?

I am looking to get an electronic device/player to use in the gym and burn some cds as well. I am leaning to IPOD. How much does it cost to download a song $0.99? I am assumimg they have the biggest selection of music as well to choose from?

[Galaril]

So, if iPOD songs each cost .99 cents on iTUNES and you figure a music CD has say 12 songs that is 12 dollars. The cd would cost about the same. The players are not cheap and appear to be not that durable for say working out. I heard sweat does them in fats and the warranty is not great only a year unless you want pay more. Does that about cover it? My question is what is the big selling point. Portability? It sure isn't price of the songs or players.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

The biggest feature I think is putting the music already own onto the IPOD. For instance, if you already own 100 CDs, you can put that on the IPOD. And then you have your whole music library wherever you go at your fingertips. You can play it in the car, on the bus, you get the idea. I run with mine in my hand and it seems to work fine. As for new songs, you're forgetting that for $12.00, you get all great songs you like. If you buy a CD, you get maybe 2-4 songs that you like (for favorite bands, you want them all, but for non-favorites you may only like just a couple of songs. I'd say this at least halves the cost of having to buy CDs. With the new IPODs (I have the 60GB video), you can fit your whole library and not even come close to using up all the memory. You can also put a ton of home video and photos, as well as transfer over a contact list from Outlook or PalmPilot. And you can also download podcasts and tv episodes to watchh on the IPOD, as well as run it directly to a TV via the headphone jack. The picture is quite good on that little thing. If you chose the path of downloading video for free, and you can watch movies, tv shows, etc. I recommend it. The key is to maximize the use, and not just put in 60 songs and leave it at that.

[-Mojo Jojo-]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

People won't like this. There are two laws of the internet that are constant:
- People will claim that they only take something for free because there isn't a reasonable way to pay for it
- Any way to pay for it will be instantly deemed unreasonable

Repeat, etc.

Or:

- Music companies try to sell music over the internet through some crappy DRM-encumbered system. People complain and ask for non-DRMed downloads.
- Music companies come up with a different crappy DRM system. People complain and ask for non-DRMed downloads.
- Music companies throw up their hands and wonder why people are never satisfied....

[Daimyo]

Wow that sucks. I'd much rather pay $1 for a song I want then have to jump through those hoops.

[Passacaglia]

Originally Posted by Easy Mac

oh, and the whole subscription model has been hacked anyway. Hell, if I pay $12.95 a month, I should be able to put it on whatever player I want.

It doesn't look like the article mentions $12.95 per month.