eMusic, the online music download store that started in 1998, has announced that it has added music from its first major label, bringing in Sony's 'classic' catalog, all music that is 2 years old or older.
The store has offered a subscription based model and DRM-free MP3s since its release, and has tracks from thousands of indie labels.
During its 11 years, the company has attracted ... [ read the full article ]
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Quote:Sony feels placing its newer, more popular songs into eMusic's unlimited, DRM-free service, is too risky
translated,
"sony feels that it can rip of customers a little more before the business strategy is forced to change as the exec's are having too much fun with the revenue stolen mostly from the artists who unwittingly sign "sony owns everything" contracts".
Quote:Pioneer music service eMusic has finally snagged a major label in Sony - but was it worth it?
On the back of the announcement there's a hard kick in the nuts for loyal subscribers: bundles have been cut and prices raised, leaving customers with half or a third of the download power they previously enjoyed.
eMusic offers DRM-free independent music with a fixed download allowance per month. The Sony deal brings back catalogue more than two years old from labels such as Columbia and RCA (such as Bruce Springstreen, The Clash and David Bowie) into the fold.
Sony's catalogue doesn't arrive until later this year - but the new deals represent a much poorer deal for subscribers. For example, the UK Basic plan now permits 24 downloads per month for £9.99 (42p per track), and a Premium of 30 per month for £17.99 (38p per track). That's half the value of the deals available at launch just three years ago, when £14.99 bought you 90 tracks per month - or 17p per track.
Booster packs, which allow subscribers to exceed the monthly allowance, have also changed: a 50 song extension goes up from £14.99 to £20.99. In the US, deals have changed from 40 for $10 when eMusic was relaunched in 2003, to 24 for $12.
(Yes, UK punters are ripped off by 50 per cent compared to Stateside music fans.)
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