“Apple Computer said Wednesday that its iTunes digital music store had sold more than 800,000 songs during its first week of operation in European markets. The news marked a strong start for the service in a region that is already substantially more competitive than the United States market was when iTunes initially launched, in the U.S., in early 2003. The store opened its digital doors in the United Kingdom, Germany and France last Wednesday,” John Borland reports for CNET News.
“More than half of Apple’s sales came in the British market alone, allowing it to pass rivals that had been in the market for substantially longer. According to the British Phonographic Institute, rivals in that market sold 500,000 songs in the first five months of 2004,” Borland reports. “‘iTunes is Europe’s top online music store,’ Apple Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs, said in a statement. ‘In the U.K. alone, iTunes sold more than 450,000 songs in the last week–16 times as many as OD2 (On-Demand Distribution), its closest competitor.'”
Borland reports, “The quick surge in Apple sales appeared to foretell an early European market progress mimicking iTunes’ ascent in the United States. Although overall digital music sales remain a tiny fraction of CD sales, and profit margins remain low, Apple has taken a commanding early lead in the market and is showing no sign of relinquishing its hold.”
Full article here.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
With PR strike against Apple’s iTunes, MyCokeMusic.com claims it is still Europe’s biggest online store – June 17, 2004
Apple sells 800,000 songs in first week with Euro iTunes Music Store – June 23, 2004
No negative spin from cnet?? I’m shocked!!!!
CNet’s editors are too dizzy from spinning.
You fools. Don’t you realize you are being locked into Apple’s format? The only player that you can use is the iPod!!!! Plus, the iPod costs money – $250 to $500.
If you join Napster for a year we’ll GIVE you a FREE Rio player with a huge 128mb of memory. Yes, 128mb player for FREE.
PS – Bill Gates, please arrange another 20-30 mil in loans for me so I can keep my company afloat and support consumer choice.
So … are the indies sticking with p2p?
Wasn’t mycokemusic.com bragging just a few days ago that they have sold 500,000 songs???
Apple has beat them in one week.
Chris Gorog, eat my nads.
Steve should kiss and make up with the indies.
I hear Roxio is coming out with a new player that writes to old 5 1/4″ floppy disk
“off to a strong start”
That is a negative report. I can assure you if one of the lap-dog bed-wetting MS clones had opened a on-line music operation with these numbers you would have thought that it was the second coming…
�
Steve Jobs:
Ignore Chris Gorog. But, I am concerned that Apple will suffer a backlash once customer’s realize they are not given a choice of formats for the iPod. I think it is your interests to open the iPod to play Real’s format.
Sure, that might save my company from bankruptcy but I really have your best interests at heart. If you don’t I’m going to talk bad about you!
Your friend,
Rob
CNET Commentary from 6/15/04 – the day Apple launched Euro iTMS:
“Apple will not repeat its staggering U.S. success.”
Looks like they were a bit off…
Apple is just fooling itself. Everyone in the real IT world knows that downloading music in a digital format will never take off. The best way to listen to music is off of vinyl disks, tape-reel cassettes, or best of all… eight-track tapes.
�
ya i want your 128 free player with 20 or 30 songs on it.
no thanks, i’ll take my mini!
(ps chris had to be kidding)
Because being locked into iTunes is a bad thing? Why would I use inferior products to put music on my iPod? This has to be a joke.
I already own 2 portable devices that holds about 20+ songs, its called my portable CD and tape players, and at least with those I can change what im listening to while on the road.
I dont want a device that just straight replaces an older technology, but surpasses it, which can only be an iPod
Cant I only buy BMWs from a BMW dealer?
Rob Glaser, you worship the ground I walk on. For that, I shall reward you with the beating you deserve. Now, go spank Chris Gorog, he likes it.
hey sputnik! glad to see you. sarcastic as ever today!
SJ, I’m not scared of you or your boy Rob Glaser. I’ve got Bill Gates supporting me and he has lots more money than you. Granted, you could buy out Roxio with your pocket change.
Our free 128mb Rio player lets you store 60 songs in WMA format! You heard me right – SIXTY. OK, in MP3 format you can only store 30 but we all know that WMA at 64kbs is “good enough” for the windoze folks.
BLOODY HELL!
CNET giving praise to Apple!!
Excuse me while I get carried away to hospital – how do they treat severe shock these days??
Re: Chris Gorog, Roxio CEO
You fools. Don’t you realize you are being locked into Apple’s format? The only player that you can use is the iPod!!!! Plus, the iPod costs money – $250 to $500.
If you join Napster for a year we’ll GIVE you a FREE Rio player with a huge 128mb of memory. Yes, 128mb player for FREE.
PS – Bill Gates, please arrange another 20-30 mil in loans for me so I can keep my company afloat and support consumer choice.
You obviously don’t understand Mac users at all!
Mac user WANT to be locked into Apple’s format by their own choice!
Unlike winnnndlows users – who are locked into microshit’s own inferior format through brainwashing!
Re: solar flare.
Sarcasm is lost on some folks.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”smile” style=”border:0;” />
And just where are all of our other “analysts” and their response to this recent development with the iTMS? Thurrott? Enderle? Anyone? Wonder what they have to say about this (then again, of course MDN will let us know if they utter even a mouse’s breath of it, what am I thinking?)…
One minor nit that I’d be curious about is whether or not they count MyCokeMusic sales as OD2 sales. Not that it matters considering that, even if they didn’t, I’d have a hard time believing that MyCokeMusic and all the other OD2 music stores would make up a 16x difference.
It’s a bit shocking to see all those online music buyers sitting on the sidelines, waiting for iTunes to come. They could’ve easily given up and settle for an inferior service, but they waited for the best….Hurrah! Now it’s up to the iPod MINI to make it’s debut.
I hope all this momentum continues to release iTunes for the rest of the world.