New "Mini Store" in iTunes stops CDs from playing...
It should be noted that the "Mini Store" in the latest version of iTunes 6.0.2, interrupts regular functions like playing music from a purchased CD as it tries to access the iTMS database.
Case In point: I recently purchase the new Mary J. Blige CD "The Breakthrough". I hadn't even noticed the new addition to iTunes until I tried to play this CD. When clicking on the desired track, I got an error message that read: "The Music Store could not process your request, please try again later."
Apparently this happens because (living in Japan) I have to buy my music from the Japanese iTMS and that particular CD is not yet available on the Japanese iTMS. Fine, that's why I bought the CD but iTMS stopping me from listening to a CD I just bought because it's not available on my local iTMS is absolutely ridiculous! Apple should be ashamed.
Fortunately I've found several workarounds to this problem but I think it shouldn't exist in the first place.
1. You could choose "Hide mini store" from the "Edit" window.
2. I also found I could switch to another iTMS where the CD is available (although I can't purchase it from my location).
As a person who purchases and listens to a lot of music, I can see that this problem will eventually escalate. So I would like to take this opportunity to suggest to Apple (and the music industry) that if you truly want to put an end to (or at least dramatically curve) illegal downloads, then you should start working on making one huge, one stop global iTMS where anyone can purchase any song anywhere in the world. In my opinion, one of the biggest reasons why people steal music is NOT because they don't want or can't afford to pay a dollar or so for a track; it's because they can't get access to the music they want through legal services like iTMS. It's just much easier to find that rare track they've been searching for through Peer-To-Peer networks. If iTMS (or any other legal music service) offered that kind of global access to music, I'm willing to bet it would cut illegal downloads dramatically. As an American living and working in Japan, I find it ridiculous that I can't purchse music I see on my home country's iTMS because I happen to be living in Japan at the moment. To the music industry I address this comment: IT IS YOUR GREED THAT IS CUTTING INTO YOUR SALES, NOT THE INTERNET! We as consumers want to pay for our music. Stop with your absurd localization tactics and let us purchase our music freely. Only then will you see an end to internet theft. Apple has proved that if given the choice, most people would prefer to buy their music legally. What more do you need?!
Then technologies like the mini store would make sense and may become a welcome addition instead of the annoyance it has become for many of us. That's my two cents. Thanks for reading.
