30% of iPhone Users Leaning Toward Using iTunes Match

[slffl]

Hell ya I'm using it!

 

[theneweyes]

I think these numbers are going to grow as users realize what this really means.

 

[AppleScruff1]

With iTunes match, do you actually get the replacement song files downloaded to your computer, or do you just get the matches "in the cloud?"

In other words, could I subscribe to iTunes match for one year and get all of my ripped songs from iTunes and then drop it a year later and continue to have my songs matched in the cloud since I now have "official" iTunes files on my computer?

I hope that this is the way it works.

 

[gnasher729]

We have yet to hear anything from Apple about iTunes Match that would address illegally obtained files. I doubt that the speculation will be true, since I doubt that the four giant record companies would make such deal.

Over the last ten years, the record companies have concentrated on sales lost to piracy (which according to them exceed the total income of the western world), while Apple has concentrated on making money by giving people what they want. And Apple has proven to be an awful lot more successful.

iTunes Match makes money. If the recording industry only wanted iTunes Match for people who don't have a single pirated song then they would get very little income from this.

I'm usually not a tinfoil hat kinda guy, but won't iTunes match give Apple some major leverage when it comes to identifying pirated music? It seems to me that by comparing the MD5 hashes of all files given to Match that it will be easy for Apple to identify exactly who has downloaded how many copies of which songs, which are then tied directly to your iTunes account forever. Is it that much of a stretch to think Apple may one day turn this data over to the RIAA?

Yeah, instead of making billions selling hardware to happy customers, Apple could make millions by selling out its customers to the RIAA. Makes total sense. I couldn't think of an easier way to destroy the company. And Google will pick up a cheap data centre, hardly ever used.

 

[chaosbunny]

Since I don't use iTunes to buy my music but prefer to get CDs I will not be using this feature. Why should I pay twice? And "the cloud" sucks anyway.

 

[JaySoul]

I definitely want it.

 

[Carouser]

I hope that this is the way it works.

It's already been explained that this isn't how it works. iCloud is for iTunes-purchased music. That's it. The music in iTunes Match doesn't magically become iTunes-purchased music.

 

[firewater101]

Yeah, instead of making billions selling hardware to happy customers, Apple could make millions by selling out its customers to the RIAA. Makes total sense. I couldn't think of an easier way to destroy the company. And Google will pick up a cheap data centre, hardly ever used.

Point taken, but I would actually be more concerned of some possible court ruling some day in the future ordering Apple to turn over the data. I don't think that is out of the realm of possibility, but thanks for the sarcasm.

 

[AaronEdwards]

Over the last ten years, the record companies have concentrated on sales lost to piracy (which according to them exceed the total income of the western world), while Apple has concentrated on making money by giving people what they want. And Apple has proven to be an awful lot more successful.

iTunes Match makes money. If the recording industry only wanted iTunes Match for people who don't have a single pirated song then they would get very little income from this.

iTunes Match makes money? $25 - Apple's 30%? What kind of money is that? That's nothing. That's the money they would get from selling 25 $0.99 songs.

Yeah, instead of making billions selling hardware to happy customers, Apple could make millions by selling out its customers to the RIAA. Makes total sense. I couldn't think of an easier way to destroy the company. And Google will pick up a cheap data centre, hardly ever used.

In what universe is not allowing customers to match pirated songs, and maybe reporting them to the RIAA, selling them out?

 

[AppleScruff1]

It's already been explained that this isn't how it works. iCloud is for iTunes-purchased music. That's it. The music in iTunes Match doesn't magically become iTunes-purchased music.

So what happens to the matched tunes, can you download them to your computer or are they in iCloud and you stream them to your devices?

 

[blybug]

So what happens to the matched tunes, can you download them to your computer or are they in iCloud and you stream them to your devices?

I doubt Apple will use the word "streaming"...they will come up with some buzzword apple:MagicSync™) and will undoubtedly make the process very seamless. Upcoming songs in the iCloud may be cached while the current song is playing, downloaded and stored on the device in some hidden area so they can be "replayed" that same session, etc. As long as you have a reasonably constant or even intermittent network connection of some kind, iTunes Match will figure out a way to make it seem like that 256kbps AAC file is at your fingertips on your device and is "yours." It may seem the same, but it won't actually be the same as a song you purchased for $1.29. When you stop paying your annual fee, access to these files stops and they will not be left sitting on your devices for you to keep.

I have likened this to Pandora, but with your personal iTunes database as the playlist and Apple's 18 million songs to draw from. I expect your iTunes playlists will be synced to the cloud the same way they are synced to an iPod, and be presented identically on all registered devices. Press play and songs will play/download/stream/whatever from Apple's cloud library, your 5GB of iCloud space, or from the local device depending on whether you have a copy there or not.

People signing up for iTunes Match will need to understand that it is a cloud service and all its functionality will not be available if they're not on network...just like Netflix, Pandora, Amazon Cloud Player, browsing Safari, checking email, facebook, etc. This is essentially doing for iTunes what dotMac and MobileMe have done for calendaring. I've been so used to my family's calendars syncing across computers and devices that I forget when helping some of my newly converted Mac friends that their iPhones don't sync with iCal unless they connect by USB. I'm so used to this "just working" for me over-the-air that a few times when I have been off network for an extended period I couldn't figure out why certain events weren't visible on all devices. The "master copy" of the calendar remains synced in the cloud, the devices just "display" the events so you can "see" them locally. iTunes Match will be the same...the "master copy" of the playlist will remain synced in the cloud, the devices just "play back" the songs so you can "listen" to them locally. Note the careful wording at the bottom of Apple's webpage about this: http://www.apple.com/icloud/features/

I've little doubt Apple will surprise us with some extraordinary under-the-hood protocols that often provide a very satisfactory experience that mimics having up to 25,000 matched songs on your 16GB iPhone. But it's a cloud service. Whether you believe these songs will be "downloaded" or "streamed" (I think it's semantics and the truth lies somewhere inbetween = MagicSync™), there will necessarily be times when you receive a message:

"This song cannot be played because you are not connected to the Internet."

 

[AppleScruff1]

What you have posted makes the most sense. I just couldn't believe that you could swap 25,000 pirated songs for upgraded legitimate copies and download and keep them permanently for $25. So you are saying that there will only be access to these matched songs when you are connected to the internet? There will be no way to actually save them to keep permanently? Again, this makes the most sense. I didn't think that Apple was going to create a haven to make pirated music legit.

Thanks for the info.