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iPod fans 'shunning iTunes store'

news.bbc.co.uk — Despite the success of Apple's iPod, few people stock their player with tracks from the company's iTunes Store, reports a study. The Jupiter Research report reveals that, on average, only 20 of the tracks on a iPod will be from the iTunes Store. CD-ripped music and files from sharing sites were far more common.

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  • Yez70, on 10/12/2007, -10/+77Dump the DRM and iTunes sales will soar.
  • devindotcom, on 10/12/2007, -4/+40Well, it makes sense - "music" has been around a lot longer than iTunes. It stands to reason that much of a given person's collection would be from the pre-iTunes era. And that's just the legal stuff. Still, only 20 tracks on average, that's the kind of statistic that makes Apple management cringe.
  • brauhze, on 10/12/2007, -3/+28The iTunes Music store is now the fifth largest retailer of music in the US. Not specifically for electronic downloads, but for all music. And is on target for becoming #4 next year.

    How is that "a drop in the ocean compared to CD sales"?
  • lcohiomatty86, on 10/12/2007, -7/+28@yez70.. you forgot about adding higher quality bit-rates as well.. and making it easier to re-download deleted/lost songs... the DRM isnt an issue as long as it allows freedom to the owner.. but helps restrict illegal copying.. which is the point of DRM.. if DRM can stay invisible to the user.. than it shouldnt be a problem to use.. but unfortunatly DRM does get in the way alot..
  • NSResponder, on 10/12/2007, -3/+23Over a billions songs sold, and the two billion mark coming up.  How do I get shunned like that?

    -jcr

  • naden, on 10/12/2007, -6/+22Sorry to disappoint you guys:

    Number of iPods sold: 58,912,000
    Number of iTMS song sold: 1500,000,000

    Average number of iTMS songs per iPod: 25
    Owning Microsoft: Priceless.
  • gagravaar, on 10/12/2007, -8/+23Download sales, although large, are still a drop in the ocean compared to CD sales, and will likely be for quite some time. So it makes sense that the majority of songs on an iPod are not downloaded, but taken from other sources.

    Apple knows this, this is why they may their profit from iPod's, not songs.

    I take exception to the word 'shunning', because it is misleading in this context.

    It suggests that consumers are deliberately not using the iTS because of some negative reason, i.e. they are upset with Apple for some reason, or Apple is not doing very well in the downloadable music market. This obviously isn't the case. The research does not say that users are 'shunning' the iTS, or anything else that negative, this is typical BBC anti-Apple FUD-spin.

    Wouldn't surprise me if this research was funded by Microsoft - they have funded Jupiter Research's 'research' before, (they tried to prove that Windows was better than Linux).

    http://searchwinit.techtarget.com/originalContent/0,289142,sid1_gci948748,00.html

    Typical BBC anti-Apple FUD, from a company that has it's research funded by Microsoft, just as their Zune player is announced. Hmmm.. coincidence?
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+17pity i can't even buy music from itunes.

    apple: give us a new zealand iTMS!
  • sabster, on 10/12/2007, -9/+22it has nothing to do with quality or DRM. the average user could careless. its just a huge money saver to download for free. i dont know anyone who wants to drop 10 grand on songs to fill up their pod
  • Flagg3, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11It took you buying 6,000 songs before you figured this out...?
  • darkyoshi, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11What? You mean Apple doesn't expect you to buy $20,000 worth of music from them?
  • gagravaar, on 10/12/2007, -2/+12brauhze:

    Digital downloads account for 6% of total music sales. So Apple have 75%ish of 6%.

    http://www.smh.com.au/news/technology/cd-sales-wobbly-as-buyers-embrace-digital-age/2005/10/05/1128191785996.html

    I'm not saying that this won't change (digital sales are the future), but it's going to take a while before traditional CD sales are wiped out.
  • kingkilr, on 10/12/2007, -4/+13I guess legality isn't an issue . . .
  • lcohiomatty86, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10of course downloads should be a fraction of the cost as compared to the CD... its a much worse value... its only good for the impulse shopper who wants that music now and cant wait for a CD to get in the mail...

    CD's give you well.. an actual disk.. a case... the album art.. and just the feeling of being able to actually hold something.. or a gift to open/give... while downloads are well.. just the 3-5 mb file thats lower quality and is heavily restricted and almost the same price.... now if a downloadable MP3/wma/aac was only like.. 50 cents a track.. than the value would be getting closer to that of a CD.. and if the prices lowered as music became older/worth less..
  • tomi, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9Exactly, maybe if you got near-cd quality music, it'd be worth it, but for current quality, it's not really that worth it.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -8/+15Well duh. Who wants to buy $20,000 worth of songs to fill up their 80 GB iPod when they can get almost all of it for free?
  • tomi, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10How do you expect us to fill up that 80GB iPod then? No way in hell I'm buying ~80GB of music.
  • teethman, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10Not only is itunes a rip off, people don't want drm and low quality bit rates. Plus, owning the actual copy with album art is so much more fun. Especially when you can get them cheap.

  • inkswamp, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7Exactly. If iTunes is shunned then the competition must be ***** lepers by comparison.
  • lcohiomatty86, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8they already got to 1.5 billion songs sold?.. i thought the 1 billion mark hit only a few months ago.
  • skidogallard, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7This sure is true for me. Most of my music is from CDs that I have ripped or gotten from my friends.
  • BWhaler, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9I don't care about the DRM as long a I never bump into the limitation for music I paid for.

    I bought about 6,000 songs and stopped because:

    The sound quality was fine for a portable player, but not good enough for the living room or even the car (with good car stereo.) I now regret buying those songs since they are only useful on my portable player.

    If Apple gave me a reasonably priced option to upgrade the quality without rebuying at full price, and higher quality options moving forward, I would go back to buying music from them.
  • HappyScrappy, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7I already own over 850 CDs. The content on them more than fills an 80GB iPod at 160kbps.
  • minoss, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9I own an ipod and I'm not buying a single song off the itunes store until Apple lets me play those songs on other mp3 players. I don't care that much about the DRM so long as it isn't invasive; I just hate being locked into one vendor.
  • kotatsu, on 10/12/2007, -4/+10I just love the idea of buying something, then not being able to play it on other devices (such as my Xbox 360) and knowing that if I change computers enough times, it will cease to work.

    So yeah, no brainer, I ripp everything from CD and always will until DRM goes away.
  • klang, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8I'll tell you who! That imaginary person that Microsoft keeps using as an example. They ALWAYS forget that most people already have 2-300 cd's of their own that they can legally put on their iPod. Talk about couples or households, some people have even more cd's.

    But you are right, nobody in real life would spend that kind of money on iTunes (Though one customer has been reported to have used more than $15.000 on iTunes)
  • bat-21, on 10/12/2007, -5/+10People buy music?
  • dohidied, on 10/12/2007, -4/+9I've never bought anything from the iTunes Store. Why would i pay $9.99 for low quality MP3s when I can get the album for 13.99 or less? If I was interested in buying one or two tracks iTunes would make sense, but I still love to listen to whole albums.
  • bizzay, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7@ d2nd

    Have you thought about collecting CDs over time? It adds up. I don't buy many CDs, but I have over 250 since I began buying them about 15 years ago. Plus, with my wife's collection, it probably approaches 300. And I bought a significant number from music clubs during sales. I'd say the average cost was $7-10/disc for me.
  • DelMonte, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7"most people already have 2-300 cd's of their own"

    Are you saying most people have 200-300 CDs? In what country do you live?

  • ArcusOfSV, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7"based soley on your one comment, id have to say you are likely a spoiled american"

    Jealous much?

    I too know people with large music libraries. A good portion of the CDs they have were bought from used CD places Sometimes for as little as $1 a piece. How is that 'spoiled'?
  • anonydigg, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4"what do you care if you own an ipod?"
    Because that way he would have to buy iPods for the rest of his life, unless he lost the money spent on songs, and he might not want to do so.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6I buy plenty of music on iTMS, they aren't putting a gun to your head to buy any.


    A lot of songs I can no longer find at the store, so it's a wonder to me
  • balloot, on 10/12/2007, -5/+8I do three things with my music:

    1) Play it on an iPod
    2) Burn it to a CD
    3) Play it on my computer

    I can do all these things perfectly fine with songs from iTMS. So I lose exactly zero freedom. In fact, the only thing I lose by using iTMS is the need to go to the store to legitimately own music. I can live with that.
  • yensed, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6I don't consider Not buying music you already own "Shunning".
  • d2nd, on 10/12/2007, -4/+7dude, you and your friends are the anomolies, 200 CDs is alot (if you arent talking about burnt cds or mixes). Most people I know dont have 100 CDs.

    based soley on your one comment, id have to say you are likely a spoiled american
  • phpfreak, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2How do you "shun" the store by not using it? If people want to import their own CDs, fine.
    In my opinion, buying from iTunes is cheaper and easier than going out and buying a CD with a million tracks I dont want. Filesharing's not for me... I like to pay the artist for their creativeness.
  • Kelmon, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3@lcohiomatty86

    Fair comment on the physical discs having a benefit in that you can give them as a present. However, with respect to having the physical discs themselves myself, since I ripped my collection into iTunes I can't say that I have ever used or looked at them again. For me the music is the only aspect of the CD that counts so having physical possession, particularly in a home where storage space is a bit of a premium, is much less important beyond the security that backup copies brings.
  • DiamondDog, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2The iTunes store is great for picking up a song here and there, but all my serious music purchases are CDs. The DRM doesn't bother me, but, thought better than an MP3, the 128kbps mpeg4 files just won't cut it on high-end audio gear.
  • vprice509, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5OK, give me a money-back-guarantee on music and I will buy more of it. If your album sucks ass I shouldn't have to be stuck with it. I am a musician myself and [if I were selling records] I would have no problem with that. THAT'S why I happily steal music off the interweb.
  • boohoo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3microsoft said the exact same thing at the Zune conference. thats why they aren't doing the itunes-to-zuneMarketplace conversion... because most ipods are full of cd music.
  • phpfreak, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4Best part is you don't need Torrents anymore if you're willing to pay $1.99, you can pause downloading the show/movie from iTunes and resume it later.
  • danieleran, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Drizzit: "I buy from allofmp3.com. The money goes to the artists, just as much and sometimes more than if I bought from iTunes."

    Seriously, are you clowning or what? That is a russian mafia site which takes your money to sell you unlicensed music. It's cheap because they are selling stuff they didn't pay for. Where did you get the idea that ANY money "goes to the artist"?

    Most artists make little from any downloads because of their contracts with the labels, but they make NOTHING from stolen music being sold by russian thugs.

    You are a jackass to be paying for something you could just as well be getting for free from your friends (or priate warez sites if you have no friends). But you are total shill for thugs when you suggest that paying for unlicensed stuff somehow supports artists. What a rube!
  • YankInOz, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I have over 1500 CDs of the which I have loaded about 8,000 songs. I have only bought 1600 items from iTunes - so statistically, I am shunning iTunes. (Yeah, right). I had CDs and Cassette tapes (remember them!?) long before iPod and iTunes. So, why wouldn't I have more of somethng other than iTunes products. I think this article is to try to disuade people from using iTunes - saying it isn't that good.

    Reality - iTunes is the #1 legal digital source where ever it is in the world. No one is even close.

    For my home equipment, I still buy and use CDs - even tho they don't hold a candle to wax (pun intended) - but where can you easily get that stuff except at the WalMart in the Twilight Zone - or is that Zune.

    :)

    Cheers.
  • phpfreak, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3I can't hear the difference either! If I can't hear the difference on Bose speakers, it can't be too much.
  • kazem, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I'd buy more albums from their store if the quality was the same as a CD. I can hear the difference between CD and 128 very easily, and I simply will not pay $12 for something that is lower quality and not a physical copy of something that I can get for $12 down the street. Most people don't give a damn about DRM. It's just some picking point that MS chose to focus on.
  • applepro, on 10/12/2007, -1/+220 tracks multiplied by how many millions of players is a helluva lot

    this article is sensationalistic
  • kerby74, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Duh... I have been buying CD's which I imported into iTunes since the 80's but I have not bought a single CD since iTunes launched. Heck I have only bought a couple of full albums off iTunes because I love being able to only buy the songs I really want one at a time.
  • chrisgeleven, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I use iTunes to buy a single song when I don't want to buy the album. Particuarly one hit wonders. iTunes is deadly to the credit card when you find an iMix like "90s One Hit Wonders" and discover some forgotten tune that you used to love.

    I have about 100-150 iTunes purchased songs. Probably half were freebies from the Pepsi promotion and the Facebook promotion (25 free songs in different genres). The rest I purchased with my money.

    However for full albums, there is no substitute yet for owning the physical CD then ripping it.
  • dacheetah, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1EBFoxbat may not have put it elagantly, but the term is "Couldn't care less", and I don't understand how so many Americans (and I've only seen Americans do it) can get that simple phrase backwards. If I "Couldn't care less" than I obviously am at the lower limit of caring, basically I don't care at all, whereas if I "Could care less" then there is a at least one "level" of careing below how much I care. Infact, if someone cared so much they would sacrifice the entire universe for something, and couldn't possibly care more about something, then they obviously "Could care less", they could care ALOT less.

    I understand the term has in many places become common usage, but that doesn't make it right. Please don't mess up the English language further, it's messed up enough as it is.
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