Amazon Launches 'AutoRip', Offering Free Digital Versions of Purchased CDs

[tny]

Originally Posted by technopimp

Or the eBook.

Amazon used to have a service called "Amazon Upgrade" where you could pay an extra $5-20 for a book (that might have cost $20-100) and also get access to a web-hosted version of the book. I did that with several of my math textbooks in grad school. When the Kindle came out, they deprecated Amazon Upgrade, and now it's very difficult to find the ebooks I already paid for (though they are still available on the site).

[quickmac]

Originally Posted by iScott428

Offer this with vinyl purchases Amazon! Anyone can rip CD's fools

Exactly. This needs to happen much more. Either free included downloaded codes on the vinyl or instant download of the MP3 version. Some people have record players that can rip vinyl to digital but the quality of those players are usually not that great.

[tny]

Originally Posted by jessica.

This is pretty cool and it's even cooler that any CDs I've bought as gifts are now there.

It looks as though possibly if a CD is marked as a gift (if you had it delivered elsewhere or wrapped), you don't get it in AutoRip.

[LethalWolfe]

Originally Posted by DaveN

People still by CDs?

Originally Posted by DipDog3

How many people even bought CDs since then???

For those out of touch with reality... 2011 was the first year online music download sales topped physical CD sales in the U.S. by a whopping 50.3% to 49.7%.

[h1r0ll3r]

I think it's a very cool idea. I generally purchase MP3's from Amazon but if I were to ever purchase a CD, it's nice to know I can instantly have a MP3 copy available in my cloud. Curious if this is for EVERY CD they have including imports and such. Seems like the only time I'll consider getting a CD is if it's an import or limited edition/out of print CD.

[stevedun]

I like this concept. Nowadays, I'll buy an album from iTunes because I can listen to it immediately. Also, it's hard to find CDs where I live (I'd have to drive at least 45 minutes for anything other than Walmart) and $9.99 is a hard price to beat.

There are albums, however, that I wish I had bought a physical copy of instead of the digital download. Not that I'd ever listen to the actual CD, but I'd like to complete certain collections or display my favorite albums in the house.

If the price is right... say $2-3 more expensive than iTunes... and I can have the best of both worlds, consider me sold.

[swagi]

Originally Posted by Chupa Chupa

Yes. Us old bats who still listen to music via an upscale wired home audio system need content that hasn't been mugged by over compression. MP3 and AAC are fine for hand held devices or low wattage portable systems, but when you get into better equipment & quality speakers, you don't need dog ears to tell a song was squeezed into it's wrapper.[COLOR="#808080"]

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Yes - you're absolutely right. But you have to consider that us old bats don't listen to godawful loudness-wars R&B-tracks. So we really hear the difference.

If you listen to Usher and the like it really doesn't matter if you listen to a compressed or uncompressed file (because they use like 10 compressor modules for the music in the studio).

If you prefer old-school stuff like Jack White you can hear the difference. Another point granted - some tone engineers really suck. Listen to Metallica's Death Magnetic (also hard in the loudness wars game) and you'll know what I mean.

[balamw]

Originally Posted by stevedun

If the price is right... say $2-3 more expensive than iTunes... and I can have the best of both worlds, consider me sold.

Often the Amazon price for a CD is lower than iTunes, but still higher or equal to their MP3 store price. Coupled with Amazon Prime 2 day shipping this is really a good deal.

B

[bjjp2]

I think this is great, and the retroactive part is particularly nice. I had about 80 CDs show up in my Amazon Cloud account today. Most I had already ripped, but saves me having to rip the rest.

[FoxMcCloud]

Lets hope the following is on Amazons radar:

1) Buy a book, get the Kindle copy
2) Buy a blu-ray, get the digital copy.

Certainly great steps. Just need it to come to the UK now!

[bryan85]

Neat! Just downloaded four albums I didn't already have on iTunes. Thanks Amazon!

[nemaslov]

Originally Posted by DaveN

People still by CDs?

I buy several hundred per year and have about 7000. I love the better quality than downloads and I can load in an any computer I want and have artwork. Works for me but I get those who don't.

[D.T.]

Originally Posted by FoxMcCloud

Lets hope the following is on Amazons radar:

1) Buy a book, get the Kindle copy
2) Buy a blu-ray, get the digital copy.

Certainly great steps. Just need it to come to the UK now!

They've done that in a rental like model with a few movies, like Prometheus:

http://www.amazon.com/Prometheus-Blu.../dp/B005LAIHY0

Buy the BD, and immediately get it streaming, but it's just a single use type thing.

Totally agree with the idea, and since there's a huge library of physical movies and books with a matching digital edition, I would think it's just a matter of working out some licensing details.

[nemaslov]

It's too bad most people like that MP3 crappy sounding music files. What a waste of great music. Lossless or beyond is the only way to go for me. The sound quality of music has eroded for many. Too bad.

[Pegamush]

buy cd from our shop, and we give you a lower quality of the same FOR FREE!!!

anyway, COULD make sense if one doesn't have a cd player on his computer (ultrabooks?). and, it costs nothing to them, since they have the digital version for sale anyway, so why not offer that?

[groovetech]

Originally Posted by frayne182

how is it hard to put in a CD and just rip it manually? lol.


I guess this makes it slightly easier.


Whatever... People still buy music?

I was buying physical CD's long before iTunes (it was called Soundjam back then), or even listening to music on a computer was very common. Pre-iPod era. For people like me with boxes of unripped cd's this is great! My vinyl collection is still going to be a pain in the ass though.

[coolfactor]

Originally Posted by frayne182

Whatever... People still buy music?

So you steal music, do you?

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Originally Posted by nemaslov

It's too bad most people like that MP3 crappy sounding music files. What a waste of great music. Lossless or beyond is the only way to go for me. The sound quality of music has eroded for many. Too bad.

What are your thoughts on AAC vs. MP3. Do you feel there is a difference? That iTunes song files at 256kpbs are better than Amazon's MP3s at 256kpbs? (they are, but just wondering about your thoughts)

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Originally Posted by nemaslov

I buy several hundred per year and have about 7000. I love the better quality than downloads and I can load in an any computer I want and have artwork. Works for me but I get those who don't.

Not any computer... hahahaha

[tevion5]

Originally Posted by Joe-Diver

Free digital copies should be included with every type of media purchase. It's not hard at all to rip a CD to your iTunes library, cloud or whatever...but inclusion of the digital copy is a nice touch. Like buying a DVD of your favorite movie that includes a digital copy. It's usually better done than something you may do yourself, such as a backup archival via Handbrake or something.

Exactly! Like with Steam games. When I buy a physical copy of a game I get a digital copy as well, not only for the operating system I bought it for, but for both Windows (and now Linux. As well in one case a PS3 purchase makes grants you the Windows and OSX versions also) as well. I think this combined with "one purchase for every OS" sort of accessibility should be adopted by every supplier of digital media of all kinds.

[thundersteele]

I want this for books!!!

[nemaslov]

Originally Posted by coolfactor

So you steal music, do you?

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What are your thoughts on AAC vs. MP3. Do you feel there is a difference? That iTunes song files at 256kpbs are better than Amazon's MP3s at 256kpbs? (they are, but just wondering about your thoughts)

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Not any computer... hahahaha

I have all my music on back up drives that play via iTunes and air express to my Rotel amp and B&W speakers. So it is a real stereo and not just a computer or iPod. Yes I iPod on the road too. But the lossless files sound so much better, fuller than AAC and especial MP3s. in this scenario. Yes they take up more space but I won't sacrifice sound quality.Lossless are like FLAC and exactly the quality of CDs but take about half the space. Now, there are many audiophiles who only think vinyl is the best sound source for music.. In a perfect scenario vinyl still sounds better, however most records are not perfect and most people don't have the really great equipment (turntables with wonderful cartridges and good phono preamps.

[bjjp2]

Originally Posted by nemaslov

It's too bad most people like that MP3 crappy sounding music files. What a waste of great music. Lossless or beyond is the only way to go for me. The sound quality of music has eroded for many. Too bad.

I just don't believe that people can reliably distinguish between a high quality MP3 and lossless in a true double blind test. Maybe a small percentage on the highest end equipment and maybe you're one of those people.

[Carouser]

Originally Posted by nemaslov

It's too bad most people like that MP3 crappy sounding music files.

It's too bad that you think the only criteria for music files is 'sound quality' and that size or accessibility or any other consideration doesn't matter at all.

You might as well complain that the airplanes refuse to ship your cast-iron steamer trunk - "it's too bad people don't care about durability any more".

There's nothing wrong with having a physical CD for high quality complemented with MP3 formats for cloud usage and for maximizing variety on a portable player.

[emaja]

Glad they offer this but for me the answer is, "No thanks."

I buy 100's of CDs a year from Amazon...

1) I own the music, not a license to listen to it.

2) When I want to sell a disk, the right of first sale applies.

3) I have a virtually indestructible physical backup.

4) I can rip them in any format I want, If I want lossless - BAM!

When I buy a CD, I rip it ALAC and enter all the metadata, then promptly put it in a storage box never to be seen again, but if I need it, it is there for me.

I feel the same about digital copies of blu-rays. Nice for some people, but I'm going to rip them myself thankyouverymuch.

[balamw]

Originally Posted by emaja

Glad they offer this but for me the answer is, "No thanks."

Why? This doesn't take anything away from you it just adds an insta-rip to the cloud?

B

[emaja]

Originally Posted by balamw

Why? This doesn't take anything away from you it just adds an insta-rip to the cloud?

B

I don't use the cloud player.

It's a good bonus for some people, but I am not interested in it for the way I listen. I'm not knocking it or those who want to use it. That's fine by me and does me no harm.