Apple today announced that music fans have purchased and downloaded more than 250 million songs from the iTunes Music Store. iTunes users are now downloading one and a quarter million songs per day, which is an annual run rate of almost half a
billion songs per year. The iTunes Music Store is now available in fifteen countries, which together represent more than 70 percent of the global music market.
“When we launched the iTunes Music Store we were hoping to sell a million songs in the first six months — now we’re selling over a million songs every day, and we’ve sold over a quarter billion songs in total,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO in the press release. “iTunes is leading the way into the digital music era and together with iPod is changing the way millions of music lovers find and enjoy their music.”
With Apple’s legendary ease of use, pioneering features such as iMix playlist sharing, seamless integration with iPod and groundbreaking personal use rights, the iTunes Music Store is the best way for Mac and PC users to legally discover, purchase and download music online. The iTunes Music Store features more than one million songs from the major music companies and 600 independent record labels, over 9,000 audiobooks, gift certificates and exclusive music not found anywhere else online.
Find out more about Apple’s iTunes Music Store here.
Denmark please, or at least stop checking the region code on VISA cards!!
magic word “daily”
joe
Wow! Wasn’t the calculation that this 50 Million would be achieved in 60 days? If i remeber correctly 200 Million was hit sometime just before Christmas. Lesst than 30 days?
Anyway Well done Apple, and kudos to all the people wgo supported the Musicstore.
No doubt about it: Apple is going to have to licence FairPlay, or be crushed.
39 days for this last 50 million, against 63 for the previous 50.
Personally, I’d pencilled in 3rd February for the 250 million mark – so to get it now (10 days early) is a bit of a boost for my theory that Apple will top a billion sometime this year.
If this keeps going for 2-3 more years, Apple will own music in all it’s vertical market glory. There will be pressure from the courts by then for Apple to open it up. It’s quickly becoming a monopoly.
Wow.
Congrats Apple. Congrats iTunes.
Here’s to another 250 million songs sold..
In related news:
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp. said on Monday it would not appeal a European Union court order to immediately implement antitrust sanctions, but that it remained optimistic it would eventually prevail in its main case.
Microsoft said a European edition of Windows without Media Player would be available “in the coming weeks”.
Wondering Joe… Can you use PayPal? Is there any wort of region checking with that?
Dudn’t matter, Billy sez he’s got hundreds of developers at work and he gets the need for having any device play any format of any media in the simplest of ways — a case of More is More.
/sarcasm
Steve said Apple doesn’t make much money in the download business…
/Sarcasm off
Keep a cool head, Buy CDs instead.
DRM is not your friend.
I believe that Apple’s secret weapon is the fact that most people who download music are Mac users. When iTMS first came out it was a Mac exclusive. At the time Steve said they had 70% of the download market. Today Steve still uses the 70% number. I’m sure more and more Windows users are discovering iTMS, but its funny to watch all the other (Windows exclusive) download services scratching their heads wondering why they can’t sell much music.
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Go Apple!
Ah just wait to Rob Glaser makes his announcement… 100 gazillion Harmony tracks sold..
In related news, Microsoft is proud to announce a 100% satisfaction rate with MSN music.
All 6 customers give it a thumbs up.
BREAKING NEWS: Due to a software glitch, Microsoft was unable to confirm, indeed which finger it was.
Devnull,
You with with that post. First Prize.
Wow, a million songs a day. Who’d a thunk.
Devnull-
funniest post of all-time
Harmony… uhhh.. what did they say?
Years from now, people will look back on Real’s Harmony as helping iPod sales tremendously..?
Pffft..
Here’s something to think about..
Real’s pushing the download service AND the subscription service
They’re pushing Harmony on iPod owners..
The iPod doesn’t work with subscription services..
Ergo.. Subscription model=Limp because it’s not gonna work with the iPod.. What does real expect people to do, buy 2 mp3 players?!
Hmmm. Some basic accounting.
1.25 mil a day
x 341 days left in 2005
——–
426.25 million songs/books sold and download in year 2005
+250 million songs already sold from iTMS
——–
676.25 million songs/books sold from iTMS by year end 2005
Beautiful!