iTunes Music Store debuts
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The announcement, as reported last week by ZDNet Australia, was made at a media briefing this morning in Sydney.
Individual songs are priced at AU$1.69, whereas new release albums are mostly AU$16.99. Over 1,000 music videos and six short movies from Pixar Animation Studios can also be purchased at AU$3.39 for viewing on the recently released video-capable iPod.
Australian artists feature heavily on the home page of the store, with Apple claiming exclusive music from Aria award winner Missy Higgins, as well as Evermore, Paul Mac and The Dissociatives. Tracks from classic Aussie artists such as INXS, Hunters & Collectors and Slim Dusty are also available. Madonna's entire catalogue and digital box sets from U2 line up the international artist selection.
Australian users can also purchase gift cards in AU$20, AU$50 and AU$100 denominations through Myer, Coles Supermarkets, BI-LO, Kmart, and other outlets as well as through the Apple Store.
Music purchased from the iTunes Music Store can be listed to on multiple computers and iPod music players. After purchasing a song, up to five computers can be authorised to listen to a purchased track.
Apple's music store is now available in 21 countries.
Other legal online music stores
Creative Music Store | DestraMusic.com | MP3.com.au | MTV Music | Mulemusic | nineMSN Music | Soundbuzz | Telstra BigPond Music
Creative Music Store Details | DestraMusic.com Details | MP3.com.au Details | MTV Music Details | |
| No. of songs | 300,000 | 500,000 | 70,000 | 150,000 |
| Average price | AU$1.49/song, AU$15/album | AU$1.89/song, AU$18.95/album | Free | AU$2/song, AU$18.50/album |
| File format | WMA | WMA | MP3 | WMA |
| Requirements | Windows 98 and above, Windows Media Player 7.1 and above | Windows 2000/XP/ME, Internet Explorer 6 or above, Windows Media Player 9 or above. | Any program that can play MP3 music files | Windows 98 SE or above, Internet Explorer 4 or above, Windows Media Player 7.1 or above, Optus Mobile account (with compatible Optus Zoo mobile) |
| Restrictions |
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| None |
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| Compatible players | Creative portable music players. | Any that can play licensed WMA files. Click here for the full list. | Any that can play MP3 music files. | Any that can play licensed WMA files. Click here for the full list. |
Mulemusic Details | nineMSN HMV Details | Soundbuzz Details | Telstra BigPond Music Details | |
| No. of songs | 200,000 | 400,000 | 300,000 | 500,000 |
| Average price | AU$1.69/song, AU$16.60/album (Prices will vary depending on when the song was released.) | AU$1.49/song (Listening to a live stream of a song costs 5c) | AU$1.49/song, AU$15/album | AU$1.49 for BigPond Internet customers. For non-BigPond customers it's AU$1.89. Albums are average AU$18.50 for non members. |
| File format | WMA | WMA | WMA | WMA |
| Requirements | Windows 98 SE and above, Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 and above or Netscape Navigator 7.0 and above, Windows Media Player 9.0 recommended. | Windows 98 or above, Windows Media Player 7.0 or above, Internet Explorer 5.0 or above. | Windows 98 and above, Windows Media Player 7.1 and above. | Windows 98 or above, Windows Media Player 9.0 or above, either Internet Explorer 4 and above or Netscape 6 and above. |
| Restrictions |
| Varies from record label to record label. Check Rights Information link beside each song/album for details. |
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| Compatible players | Any that can play licensed WMA files. Click here for the full list. | Any that can play licensed WMA files. Click here for the full list. | Any that can play licensed WMA files. Click here for the full list. | Any that can play licensed WMA files. Click here for the full list. |
Creative Music Store
Creative's Music Store works in the same way as iTunes', in which
it's a program that has been customised to be an on-line store.
You can download the MediaSource software from Creative's site,
or if you're buying a new player from Creative it should be
bundled in. The Media Source software, which is basically a
re-tooled Windows Media Player but with the Music Store and
Creative Soundblaster compatibility built-in, is only compatible
with Creative players.
DestraMusic.com
Destra Music's site, one of the first in Australia to offer paid
music downloads, also powers the on-line music stores of several
leading Australian retailers, including Leading Edge, JB Hi Fi, Sanity and more. For a full
list of retailers, visit Destra's
website. Destra is also the company behind the free site
MP3.com.au. destramusic.com (another fully owned subsidiary of
destra) was the first company in Australia to launch a legal
digital music service in December 2003
MP3.com.au
Before you rush off to MP3.com.au thinking that you'll be able to
download Britney's best for free, be aware that the site is a
forum for mainly unsigned artists to have their music heard.
Artists from around Australia (and some internationally) upload
their songs as MP3 files on the site, which means that there are
no digital rights management issues to get your head around. If
you're on the look-out for new music and want to sample some new
sounds, MP3.com.au is the site for you.
MTV Music (powered by
Optus Zoo)
MTV Music is an unusual beast in that it allows you to purchase
songs either through your PC or through your mobile (providing
you're an Optus customer), with the bill being charged to your
monthly Optus mobile account. The service also allows you to
download true tones for your mobile.
Mulemusic
Mulemusic has been up and running since February last year, and
has a stronger focus on alternative and indie artists than some
of the other music download sites - although you can still find
your Delta's and George Michael's there.
nineMSN Music
nineMSN's music download store (which is officially co-branded
the nineMSN HMV store) doesn't have a blanket DRM policy, with a
spokesperson saying the rights vary from label to label. Users
can check what a particular song/album's DRM is by clicking on
the Rights Information link which should be present beside each
song listed at nineMSN.
Soundbuzz
Soundbuzz was founded in Singapore and has an Asia-wide focus,
which means as well as all the usual Western artists you'll find
a great selection of Cantonese, Mandarin and Indian music.
Soundbuzz is also the tech powering other local music sites such
as Telstra BigPond, Creative' Music Store and Optus' MTV
Music.
Telstra BigPond
Music
It pays to have a BigPond Internet account if you're planning to
use BigPond Music, as you get a substantial discount from what
Joe Public has to pay.