&t
“Universal Music Group, the world’s largest music company, has declined to sign a long-term deal with Apple Inc.’s iTunes music store, leaving open the possibility for exclusive deals with other services, an industry source said on Sunday,; Yinka Adegoke reports for Reuters.
Adegoke reports, “Universal will continue to sell music and videos of artists including 50 Cent, Mariah Carey and Black Eyed Peas via iTunes on a month-to-month basis, rather than be locked in to a two-year agreement Apple had proposed, the source said.”
“In effect, Apple will now have similar terms to those that Universal already has with the majority of its retail partners,” Adegoke reports. “Some music executives have privately expressed frustration that Apple’s dominant position may have hampered growth of the fledgling digital music market by keeping users locked within the Apple system.”
MacDailyNews Take: No iPod is required to buy and play music from iTunes Music Store. iTunes Music Store use is not required to play music on iPod. Therefore: no “lock-in.” “Lock-in” is nothing more than a fantasy for the weak-minded and/or for those who’ve been soundly-whipped in either the device and/or online content markets.
Adegoke continues, “Universal, which produces one in three albums sold in the United States, has been leading the push by music companies to demand that new technology and media partners who want to license music share in the proceeds of the new products as well. Last year Universal signed a deal with Microsoft Corp. to take a small share of sales of its digital media player, the Zune.”
Full article here.
Okay, so it took Microsoft nearly a year to stuff the channel with 1 million Zunes, so if Universal gets $1 per Zune, they made a whopping $1 million? No wonder they want a slice of Apple’s iPods and iPhones. Microsoft’s Zune is a desperate joke. It’s the WNBA of the digital media device world.*
Mediocresoft was so late, with so little, they would have signed anything because without Universal, the Zune would have been even more of a flop (if that’s even possible).
Does Sony pay Universal Pictures a royalty for every TV they sell? No. Does GE pay Universal Music a royalty for every AM/FM radio they sell? No. But, Apple is supposed to pay royalties to Universal on every iPod and iPhone sold regardless of whether any Universal content is ever even played on Apple’s devices? Why, because Apple is insanely successful? Is that why they should pay royalties where no one else does? Nonsense.
Universal is thinking like a dinosaur because they are one. They are also nuts. Universal et al. are crazy dinosaurs who, if they can’t get their act together very soon, face certain extinction.
*Boring mediocrity that real people couldn’t care less about propped up by vastly larger organizations with agendas unrelated to the product itself. Ginned-up “interest” cannot sustain failure for long.
It’s really up to Universal. I don’t believe for a minute the comment about the “lock-in”. I mean Universal can’t be that stupid, can they? They can sign an agreement tomorrow similar to the one from EMG, and the lock-in will be gone! They are the ones that made Apple use DRM to “lock-in” users, but now they complain about hardware sales!? Unreal!
Interesting point Gregg.
Apple probably has no worries since being the third largest retailer they have some leverage also. I doubt the Universal will want to miss out on potentially 600M song sales per year, which equates to around $300M revenue from iTunes at current download rates.
I doubt that Apple would agree to a cut in music player sales unless it was something akin to in Canada that compensates musicians for sales of recording media.
Apple are in the ascendency and it is only natural for those who have controlled the business in the past to try and manipulate the industry for their own benefit. Good luck Universal, I doubt that you will succeed.
I wonder why MDN has chosen not to report the DECLINE of Mac software/hardware.
http://marketshare.hitslink.com/report.aspx?qprid=3
http://marketshare.hitslink.com/report.aspx?qprid=5
Internet Explorer use went up! GO MICROSOFT!
Is reading comprehension and analysis a valued skill anymore?
In the former report, it would be obvious to a blind man in a dark room that IE’s penetration of the market is down to 78.84% from 83.56% a year ago: that’s a drop of 5.65%.
In the latter report, total Windows OS usage on the net was 90.39%. A year later, despite the release of the incredible (take that how you want) Vista, Windows penetration is 90.46%. That’s market share growth of less than one-tenth of one percentage point.
In comparison, Apple’s penetration has gone from 4.29% to 6%: that’s a 39.86% rise in traffic which is broadly analogous to Apple’s year-on-year market share growth in the computer market as a whole. Actually, it’s slightly more which can only be down to one reason which is that many Apple systems are experiencing an extended lifetime beyond the purchase of a new system.
In comparison, nearly every Windows system that gets added to the Net is simply a replacement for some other Windows system that has exceeded its ‘best-before’ date (arguably the date before it has a Windows OEM sticker put on it, but let’s not quibble).
It amazes me that cprest1@hotmail.com is incapable of interpreting these simple facts, but maybe years of using Microsoft products has caused some sort of atrophy in his/her critical faculties.
Drop em. Call Bono.
Ok, let’s see if I can do this quickly –
A Brief History of the Music Industry
(and how they’ve shot themselves in foot on numerous occasions)
The “Music Industry” – as a corporate type business – has existed for only about 100-150 years.
In 1800s the main way to ‘sell’ music was via sheet-music since many people had a piano, and could play it, and they wanted the latest/greatest hits to enjoy at home. The most popular, and biggest selling, song in USA for about 50 years was Swanee River, and Foster got nada on royalties for it aside for the $100 or so he made when he originally sold it to a publisher.
By late 1800s the ‘player piano’ was the new tech of its day, and Billboard – yes, them, they’ve been around a while – measured sales of ‘rolls’ and had a Top 10 list same as today.
In early 1900s, into the 1920s, other new technologies were starting – recordings and radio – and the ‘sheet music/piano roll’ industries missed that boat and probably never thought it would float in first place. Does that sound familiar?
Throughout the rise of radio into the 1930s most all music was performed live-on-the-air. Radio wasn’t playing records, that was left to folks at home on their 78s.
Once WWII started, and all the bands/musicians had joined the Military, the Radio stations then had to start playing records to fill that gap.
That is when the well documented ASCAP/BMI war broke out. With ASCAP – founded years earlier by Irving Berlin wanting to ensure he wouldn’t suffer same fate as Foster with royalties – on the side of the Record Industry attempted to then collect royalites from the Radio Stations each time they played an ASCAP song – believe the amount they wanted was $0.10. But the Radio Stations only wanted to pay $0.05, and the two groups could not reach a compromise, so ASCAP music was pulled from Radio broadcast and BMI was formed (Broadcast Music Industry) with new groups who were not already signed with ASCAP. Most of the Artist with ASCAP were the Big Bands and Crooner in the Northern Metropolitan Areas(i.e.) so that only left the Race Records (later to become Soul/R&B/Rap/Hip-Hop) and Hillbilly (C&W) musicians available to sign with BMI and get played on Radio.
Well, to the surprise of many in those Northern Metro areas (read – money/influence/power/numbers), who’d never heard much music on the radio aside from Glenn Miller or Bing Crosby were happy with the ‘new’ music many were hearing for the first time.
This ‘cross pollination’ of American Music now available to new markets hasten the rise, and invention, of Rock and Roll by the late 1940s into the 1950s. And the ‘status quo Music Industry’ missed that boat too. Best example of that is how Sam Phillips and Col. Parker took Elvis (although, yes, RCA was involved) and helped re-invent American Culture. Adding to this dynamic was the rise of the ‘Baby Boom’ along with generational battle between 33s and 45s.
The next major milepost was the British Invasion as ‘music/entertainment’ became a Global Commodity.
Then by the 1980s, the wheel was re-invented, again, with the rise of MTV and the exposure they gave ‘new’ music that wasn’t being played on the Radio at that time.
Now we’re up to the Digital Age with Napster, iTunes, etc … and imagine most of you can do the math from here.
I’ve given 4 or 5 examples of how the ‘entertainment/music/pop-culture’ industry has had to adjust over the past 100 years or so, and usually not very well. What we’re seeing now is a repeat of the same ol’ story.
If History is any indication – they’ll probably manage to shoot themselves in the foot, again.
Appears Universal already has their gun loaded.
Thank You
BC Kelly
Tallahassee Fla
I buy all my music on CDs. Why should I pay a Universal iPod tax?
Complete douchebags. Apple, tell ’em to go to hell.
It makes no difference whether Universal renews 24 times or 1 time in a two-year period. It is not going to give up distribution through the third-largest music retailer in the U.S.
I don’t see how this is confusing. It must be painful to be this obtuse.
Yes, they could burn it to CD, eating $ for the medium, polluting for the production of the plastic, taking up MASSIVE amounts of physical space compared to a digital music player, and eventually having it scratch and become unusable. And even if they DO want to burn it to a medium that fits 12 songs on a size that doesn’t EVEN fit in your pocket, they have to use iTunes to do it.
They could also bring it to a friend’s house, play it on his iTunes, and record it onto mini-cassette from the speakers.
But if they wanna play it on either of the two things that people actually play music on, either of the platforms which it’s INTENDED to play on (computer or portable music player), they have to use Apple’s.
Back on topic, I don’t see how UMG can now expect Apple to promote UMG artists on iTS’ front page; after all, why promote someone when their record company might pull their music in 30 days.
Far better to concentrate resources on the labels who wish to be co-operative partners in the iTS project such as EMI or independent labels who won’t spit in your face when you’re increasing their distribution at practically no cost to them.
In other words, fsck ’em: let them deal with supermarkets like Wal-Mart who’ll expect massive discounts and retros on physical product that actually needs to be manufactured and distributed.
And when U2 and others decline to renew their contracts because they think it would be better to work with companies that understand the economics of the digital world, maybe the CEO of UMG would like to explain to his shareholders why he’s lost the confidence of the asset that actually brings in the money.
uh huh —
You’ve got it exactly. The point is that if I want to, I can license HD-DVD or Blu-Ray and build a product that plays either or both of those discs and sell it to you.
But I can’t build a product that plays Apple’s songs. Because they’ve locked me out, and someone who’s bought songs from Apple can’t play it on the product of his choice, because Apple’s locked them IN.
“Some music executives have privately expressed frustration that Apple’s dominant position may have hampered growth of the fledgling digital music market by keeping users locked within the Apple system.
Those concerns were further highlighted with the launch of Apple’s iPhone last weekend, which they believe may give Apple further control in the mobile phone-based digital music market.”
JFC. Sure music executives are saying this. However the author then writes on as if this were true. Nevermind that these are the music execs that fumbled, stumbled, and willfully held back the digital music market until Apple provided the roadmap for them. Not only that, but Apple keeps these idiots from killing the market by preventing them from “creative pricing”, which is a euphemism for “$3/track”.
But, no, Apple is to blame and so is the iPod and iPhone. Fuck, by sellling music via iTunes, Apple is hurting sales!!! See how that works?
OK, then if Universal won’t sign on for the full term as the other suppliers then they shouldn’t get the same cut of the profits as they do. Apple should reduce Universal’s cut a few percentage points! Standard business practice, no contract, or shorter contract, less preferential pricing.
PC-
OK…here ya go…
I create a disk image…I ‘burn” all my music as AIFF files…I can take my oh so lovely and environmentally friendly flash drive anywhere I want, play the music on anything and I’ve escaped the lock in. I can re-use the flash drive and either transfer the data or use it as my main storage medium.
No lock in, no pollution, no problem
Here’s the tool
http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/10910
Damn, where WILL I get my Fitty Cent, Black Eyed Peas and Mariah Carey tracks now? 😀
Lunatics. On the off chance they have anything I want (and if those three are their stars, well…) there are other ways to get it that involve their getting NO payment as opposed to what they derive from iTMS.
Hurray!!!! Show them the door Apple.
Don’t let them bully you.
Universal may represent 1 in 3 big talents out there but not to worry Apple. This 1/3 that Universal packs can most-likely be found in 3 other locations. 1) pirated possible, 2) other legit downloadable sites, or 3) from record stores on cd.
All which will STILL play on iPOD. Perhaps not iPhone… but definately the iPOD.
SO IT really doesn’t stop the public to play what Universal has.
Now if I knew how to do the numbers, I might see the importance in all this. I’m no bean counter but I can say this, “I didn’t buy an iPOD to shop for all the Universal labels; if I can’t find it – I’ll buy it on some other site – if it wouldn’t play – I’ll buy the cd and iTune the song.”
See there still is choice for the consumer.
Hey, why is it that Futureshop and BestBuy stores online MUSIC selection doesn’t work on iPOD. There should be an up roar of the reverse kind over that.
just an option
Hurray!!!! Show them the door Apple.
Don’t let them bully you.
Universal may represent 1 in 3 big talents out there but not to worry Apple. This 1/3 that Universal packs can most-likely be found in 3 other locations. 1) pirated possible, 2) other legit downloadable sites, or 3) from record stores on cd.
All which will STILL play on iPOD. Perhaps not iPhone… but definately the iPOD.
SO IT really doesn’t stop the public to play what Universal has.
Now if I knew how to do the numbers, I might see the importance in all this. I’m no bean counter but I can say this, “I didn’t buy an iPOD to shop for all the Universal labels; if I can’t find it – I’ll buy it on some other site – if it wouldn’t play – I’ll buy the cd and iTune the song.”
See there still is choice for the consumer.
Hey, why is it that Futureshop and BestBuy stores online MUSIC selection doesn’t work on iPOD. There should be an up roar of the reverse kind over that.
Apple, drop them from the tree!!!!!
Hurray!!!! Show them the door Apple.
Don’t let them bully you.
Universal may represent 1 in 3 big talents out there but not to worry Apple. This 1/3 that Universal packs can most-likely be found in 3 other locations. 1) pirated possible, 2) other legit downloadable sites, or 3) from record stores on cd.
All which will STILL play on iPOD. Perhaps not iPhone… but definately the iPOD.
SO IT really doesn’t stop the public to play what Universal has.
Now if I knew how to do the numbers, I might see the importance in all this. I’m no bean counter but I can say this, “I didn’t buy an iPOD to shop for all the Universal labels; if I can’t find it – I’ll buy it on some other site – if it wouldn’t play – I’ll buy the cd and iTune the song.”
See there still is choice for the consumer.
Hey, why is it that Futureshop and BestBuy stores online MUSIC selection doesn’t work on iPOD. There should be an up roar of the reverse kind over that.
APPLE, let them drop from the TREE!!!!
urray!!!! Show them the door Apple.
Don’t let them bully you.
Universal may represent 1 in 3 big talents out there but not to worry Apple. This 1/3 that Universal packs can most-likely be found in 3 other locations. 1) pirated possible, 2) other legit downloadable sites, or 3) from record stores on cd.
All which will STILL play on iPOD. Perhaps not iPhone… but definately the iPOD.
SO IT really doesn’t stop the public to play what Universal has.
Now if I knew how to do the numbers, I might see the importance in all this. I’m no bean counter but I can say this, “I didn’t buy an iPOD to shop for all the Universal labels; if I can’t find it – I’ll buy it on some other site – if it wouldn’t play – I’ll buy the cd and iTune the song.”
See there still is choice for the consumer.
Hey, why is it that Futureshop and BestBuy stores online MUSIC selection doesn’t work on iPOD. There should be an up roar of the reverse kind over that.
Apple, let them drop from the tree!!!!
Oh no… Universal rendered my iPOD useless,
now I am forced to use it to cheat in exams.
What a joke. Bye bye Universal.
Apple should simply offer to allow Universal to sell iPhones at the retail outlets.
Then it’s equal – Apples sells their music, they sell Apple’s iPhones.
What could be fairer?
Let’s Boycott Universal. List the artists so we don’t buy them. Viva La Resistance!!!
MDN Magic Word (for real): arms as in Let’s take up arms against Universal
Why do I have the feeling that PC Apologist is from Norway? The Norwegians didn’t understand any of our common sense arguments either.
The truth is that Steve Jobs and Apple have freed the consumers from the monopolistic practices of the music industry, and are forcing the music industry into a new role they don’t like.
Just wait until the iPhone forces the consumer’s best interests and desires onto the cellphone manufacturers and carriers. As Steve says…”the carriers are nothing but portals”.
And that’s why people are loyal to Apple.
It’s fairly simple, if Universal want to rip the piss and withhold their music cat from iTunes, then i will respond in the manner which they deserve.
I will not buy their products, if like it that much i will copy it.
If they as a company cannot act in a reasonable manner as a service provider, they will be treated with the contempt they deserve.