iTunes Music Store Japan in 2004

[MacRumors]

Apple is opening its first retail store in Japan this Sunday (Nov 30th, 2003).

Steve Jobs is presently visiting Japan to celebrate the opening of the Apple Store Ginza and announced that Apple will be launching the iTunes Music Store for the Japanese market in 2004. Napster has reportedly made a similar announcement as well, with both companies currently in negotiations with Japanese record labels.

Related link: Asahi.com (Japanese)

[mproud]

Here's a pretty good translation:

American PC corporation Apple Computer CEO Steve Jobs on November 27th said he has definite plans for America's popular online music store service to start in Japan in 2004. Although Japan has only a few internet distributors, it still ranks second in the software marketplace in the world, next to the US. Japan is aiming to undertake the foreign capital system to expand its place in the online market.

Apple is in the middle of negotiations with Japanese record labels in order to start the service.

At the end of April of this year, Apple began its online service in America all at once with a bang. With no monthly fee, people can easily buy 1 song for 99 cents each (about 108 yen), leading to sales that were so strong that in one week it had sold a record 1 million songs. More than 17 million songs have been sold since. In the first week of October, about 7 online companies have shared the online market.

In Japan, Sony Group's Label Gate company is developing a managed site to include each and every record the company distributes. Download figures for the month are projected to be on the small scale of approximately 70,000 songs. The US software company Roxio will also be in Japan within one year when the new Napster service will be announced. Japan's music industry is watching how the US is in a hurry to stimulate the market by undertaking new services.


Also Japan related:

MacMinute and MacNN are both reporting (from CNN) that Osaka will be getting a new store next year.

http://money.cnn.com/2003/11/27/tech...reut/index.htm

Boy, it's too bad they didn't say this last year. I'm in Osaka now and I would love to see an Apple store here!

Economists will be happy on news like this, as the Kansai region (which includes Osaka and Kyoto) has been one of the hardest hit through Japan's sluggish economy.

[Fall]

woo! Japab!

[Freakk123]

Does this mean that the Japanese music store will be released before the European or Canadian? That would be too bad...

[Brock]

Why not Canada? Why not Canada?

[Phazer80s]

Let's hope this means that other countries/regions will get it soon, too. The timing of the Japan announcement is no doubt due to the opening of the Ginza store.

What announcements will tomorrow bring for those of us in North America?

[skymac]

Come on iTMS canada come on. I'm kind of skeptical though since ive never really heard steve make much reference to it and i supose he'll consider it a big deal. but man oh man i need to get off of limewire its so awful i could vomit but congrats to Japan, the faster iTMS cand spread internationaly the better chance it has of competing with all the other online music buying plcaes in those locations and well into the future.

[Macmaniac]

It opens in less then 15 minutes
Lets hope iTMS for Japan will be quickly follower by Europe and Canada!

[Longey Nowze]

ok this is great news! the announcment of the the first international iTMS and the opening of the first Apple store out side of the US! the is amazing! now lets hope that Apple will open more stores and more iTMS in other places like throughout Europe an Apple Store London maybe on Regent or Oxford st. one in Paris right on the Champs! one in Rome near the Spanish steps or would Milan be a better place? how about a few in the Mid east? places like Dubai are good for an Apple store lots of tourists all year round!

I have a question, iTMS Japan would have Japanese music right? would that music be available in iTMS US?? this would bring more exposure to music that people wouldn't have ever had a chance to hear.

Thank You
MaT

[avus]

Originally posted by Freakk123
Does this mean that the Japanese music store will be released before the European or Canadian? That would be too bad...

Well, say whatever you want, but Japan is the second largest market for music CD after the US, so I consider it to be only natural.

[hokka]

Good news, but...

how is this a rumor? it's been known for months

[whfsdude]

Originally posted by hokka

how is this a rumor? it's been known for months

No one said this was a rumor

[iRiKliAN]

ok this is great news! the announcment of the the first international iTMS and the opening of the first Apple store out side of the US! the is amazing! now lets hope that Apple will open more stores and more iTMS in other places like throughout Europe an Apple Store London maybe on Regent or Oxford st. one in Paris right on the Champs! one in Rome near the Spanish steps or would Milan be a better place? how about a few in the Mid east? places like Dubai are good for an Apple store lots of tourists all year round! I have a question, iTMS Japan would have Japanese music right? would that music be available in iTMS US?? this would bring more exposure to music that people wouldn't have ever had a chance to hear. Thank You MaT

What about Australia?... All of a sudden we dont exist.

Apple Store Melbourne, voted the most liveable city in the world!!

[iAlan]

I will be at the Ginza opening and hope to get there early enough to get one of the 2,500 t-shirts thay are giving away.

I will take a few pics to let you know how it goes.

I hope they have some opening discounts, as I would love to leave with a new dual G5. I can only hope...

I was also wondering why Apple didn't opt for a store in Akihabara? For those of you who don't know, Akihabara is a district in Japan that is made up of nothing other than electronics stores (major chains and independants) selling computers, TVs, VCRs, DVD players, stereo equipment - everything electrical. Akihabara takes up close to 3 city blocks (maybe more if you factor in all the side street that seem to be growing and growing with new stores) and is the best place to see absolutely everything.

Anyway, Ginza is still a very good location.

[mproud]

Originally posted by Macmaniac
It opens in less then 15 minutes

Sorry, it opens Sunday (Saturday evening in America).

[hokka]

Originally posted by whfsdude
No one said this was a rumor

well, this is MacRumor.com not MacDailyNews.com, am I wrong?

[Quobobo]

Originally posted by Longey Nowze
I have a question, iTMS Japan would have Japanese music right? would that music be available in iTMS US?? this would bring more exposure to music that people wouldn't have ever had a chance to hear.

You have no idea how much I want this to be true (Japanese music in other music stores, specifically Canada). I listen to quite a few Japanese bands, and my options for listening to their music suck; I can waste a lot of time trying to find their music for download (not always successful), or I can pay absolutely sickening prices to import their CDs. If the US/Canada iTunes store had Japanese music at the same prices as other music, I would buy so much more music from Apple.

I just hope that something as awesome as this won't be screwed up by licensing issues with the record companies...

[winmacguy]

the reason why iTMS is not going out world wide as fast as us Mac users and Mac owners would like is because of the respective laws governing the copying of CDs and music in each country. It has nothing to do with Steve Jobs being slow about it or holding back. Apple has to negotiate specifc deals with record labels and negotiate various laws in order to provide access for iTMS in each country (Canada, European Countries, Australia, New Zealand etc)
Unfortunatley down here in New Zealand we have some of the tightest laws regarding copying of CDs in the world - it is illegal to copy or burn a CD onto another CD or music playing device. This doesnt mean that we dont do it. It would take a law change in parliament to make way for the iTunes music service to be available here. we do have a local downloading music service selling CDs whole are currently trying to negotiate with major labels but not having much luck. So until a law change happens we can only hope.....

[Longey Nowze]

Originally posted by iRiKliAN
What about Australia?... All of a sudden we dont exist.

Apple Store Melbourne, voted the most liveable city in the world!!

sure you exits! except that you lost to England, so they have to get iTMS first :P

anyway sorry for that I didn't mean to leave you out! I'm only human.

sorry
MaT

[mproud]

An interesting thing is how the costs will be determined in other countries.

As we all know, currencies fluctuate, but pricing I would figure would not change too much.

Music is quite more expensive here in Japan. Many new albums will go for about 2000 yen (about $18 US). I'm guessing that Apple will set the price per song around 129 yen each and albums at 1299 yen.

Will European nations pay 0,99 Euros per song and 9,99 Euros per album like in the US?

Interesting, isn't it?
omoshirosoodesne.

[sushi]

Originally posted by iAlan
I will be at the Ginza opening

Cool. Looking forward to the pics.

Originally posted by iAlan
I was also wondering why Apple didn't opt for a store in Akihabara?

Since both locations are in Tokyo, my guess would be that the Ginza area is the upscale shopping district.

...and Apple is already well represented in Akihabara.

Sushi

[ITR 81]

It will open in the second half of 2004. Osaka is the second largest city in Japan.

There is UK store also on the books for sometime next yr as well.

Jobs is adding around 25 stores a yr so I expect about 5 of those stores to open overseas.

As for Australia I believe since they are opening Apple Stores inside retail stores they might not open a Apple Store right away there atleast not until around 05'.

I believe tomorrow more iTMS news will be given out. Probably about iTMS, Japan, Germany, France, UK, Sweden, Canada, Korea and Australia. I believe most these countries will get a store open to them by next yr.

I bet some these stores may open in Jan. for MacWorld or the CES show. A iTMS overseas at the CES show would kill anything MS is showing. If Apple wants to up-stage MS thats place to do it.

[ITR 81]

http://www.digitmag.co.uk/news/displ...fm?NewsID=3497

[mproud]

South Korea should be VERY on Apple's to-do list. They're going bananas for the iPod.

[MrSmith]

This may be a silly question, but do you think the Japan version will include all the music offered in the US version as well as Japanese music?

Someone PLEASE tell me it will be so...