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Apple and EMI Music Launch 'iTunes Pass' Short-Term Subscriptions

Hater, please

bbq2k said:
Depeche Mode is their flag ship on this service? Were Katrina and the Waves too busy?

If the cost of the combined music value is equal to or less than the cost of the "pass," what's the added value to consumers?! :confused:
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Depeche Mode may not be your cup of tea, but your comparison is absurd. Depeche Mode are not a pop band and they are not a one-hit wonder. Synth-driven doesn't mean pop.

If you guys don't like DM then move along. There is absolutely no relevance to bashing the band that is the first to try this new feature.
 
alexbates said:
I agree that Apple has made a big mistake. I still dont even fully understand what this service even is yet. They shouldn't make it so confusing.
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I can almost guarantee you that this is part of the "deal" Jobs agreed to get DRM free songs on iTunes.

The more confusing Apple makes it, the less it will sell, the sooner the record companies will stop asking for it.

Jobs wins again.
 
Unspeaked said:
How dim are you people?

I told myself I wouldn't post in this thread (though I've enjoyed reading it) but can't help myself any longer...

Really, the level of ignorance in this thread is giving me a headache.
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Okay, what you're bemoaning above isn't ignorance, it's disagreement with your point a view. Ignorance is not knowing about something; we all in this thread have the same information. You and a minority of others in this thread think this program seems worth it; the majority don't agree.

I'm not a fan of DM, but I love Tom Waits... and yet there's no way I would pay $20 to "subscribe" to him for a short time, sight unseen, sound unheard. If you think this makes me ignorant, then I say you're confused.
 
bbq2k said:
Okay, what you're bemoaning above isn't ignorance, it's disagreement with your point a view. Ignorance is not knowing about something; we all in this thread have the same information. You and a minority of others in this thread think this program seems worth it; the majority don't agree.

I'm not a fan of DM, but I love Tom Waits... and yet there's no way I would pay $20 to "subscribe" to him for a short time, sight unseen, sound unheard. If you think this makes me ignorant, then I say you're confused.
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I stand by my proclamation of ignorance.

If you look at what I said, it was that anyone who's a big fan of a band and is already going to buy their album (and most people in this category would do so without ever hearing a single sample or note from it) then there's very little risk to this deal.

Also, people latching onto the word "subscription" is further proof of ignorance.

I don't know if this is Apple's word or MacRumor's, but clearly what you're buying here is the digital equivalent of a deluxe album (which have been around for ages and usually comes with B-Sides, remixes, enhanced video tracks, etc). Do people really think that they'll buy this pass which expires on a certain day and then suddenly within the next day or two Depeche Mode will releases dozens of tracks that they're too late to download? That's ridiculous. This is most definitely well-timed to encompass the release cycle of the new album, from start to finish. End of story.
 
bemayo said:
Depeche Mode may not be your cup of tea, but your comparison is absurd. Depeche Mode are not a pop band and they are not a one-hit wonder. Synth-driven doesn't mean pop.

If you guys don't like DM then move along. There is absolutely no relevance to bashing the band that is the first to try this new feature.
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First, a quibble: DM is pop, period. I listened to a lot of their music in the 80s, when they were relevant. I recommend adjusting the scale on your musical spectrum. If you think that DM is miles away from, say, Bauhaus, another 80s pop band that I loved, then your musical universe could fit into a bottle cap and should be expanded and diversified.

Second, my main point: it does matter who Apple is getting to launch a new product, just as it matters who Motorola gets to hold up their phones in commercials, or who Coke gets to slurp their sugar water on billboards. Spokespeople create brand identity; identity speaks. Apple's choice of DM to be the premier face of this product speaks loudly, and says "we're out of touch."
 
Perhaps the labels are dipping their toe into the iTunes Store subscription idea. We know how skittish they've been about selling online, and this could be another experiment. These initial subscriptions offerings are limited to one artist and to a short time period, but either of these limitations could be relaxed down the road. Maybe it will evolve into multiple artists for a given label, or longer periods of time.

If an album doesn't come out as scheduled, due to unforeseen circumstances, will they give you your money back?

Personally, I can imagine making a "pass purchase" for only a couple of artists, for whom I prefer online purchases to CDs and for whom I have routinely purchased all music. But... I'm interested only in real music releases. Given the extras they include, such as "video exclusives", I might end up paying more than I would have for just the music, even though they consider it a savings. I guess I have my own fear of the unknown!
 
Diode said:
Very smart. The new music model will be to cater to your "#1 fans" by providing them premium content at a premium price.

I expect lots to follow suite.
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Best still your real fans are paying up front, they pretty much underwrite the album release. Schemes like this could really take alot of the risk out of music or at least spread it out. Would be great to see a few independent bands try it out.
 
bbq2k said:
First, a quibble: DM is pop, period. I listened to a lot of their music in the 80s, when they were relevant. I recommend adjusting the scale on your musical spectrum. If you think that DM is miles away from, say, Bauhaus, another 80s pop band that I loved, then your musical universe could fit into a bottle cap and should be expanded and diversified.

Second, my main point: it does matter who Apple is getting to launch a new product, just as it matter who Motorola gets to hold up their phones in commercials, or who Coke gets to slurp their sugar water on billboards. Spokespeople create brand identity; identity speaks. Apple's choice of DM
to be the premier face of this ill-advised product speaks volumes about being out of touch.
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Wow, a personal attack! Congratulations on taking the low road. I am not going to debate a faceless person over who knows more about music, but I can assure you my "musical universe" is bigger than a bottle cap. I'd say your definition of pop is different than mine. IMHO, "pop" means popular music that is ear candy: it might taste good, but it's just empty calories. That doesn't match DM. Regardless, my point was that lumping Depeche Mode in with Katrina and the Waves is absurd. And it is (but you already knew that). If you want to make more personal aspersions, rock on. I'm abandoning this idiotic thread.
 
Doctor Q said:
If an album doesn't come out as scheduled, due to unforeseen circumstances, will they give you your money back?
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I thought of this, as well.

As I alluded to in my post a little further up, I think it would be very unlikely for any unforeseen circumstances to pop up, since I believe this is very carefully timed by EMI and Apple, but if that were the case my guess would be an extension of the "pass."
 
This is actually genius when you think about it. You pay money up front for the subscription then when the singles from that album are released over the next few months you can download them for free. I don't know about in america but in the UK downloads count towards the charts. This means anyone who got the subscription is already contributing to the chart success of the singles whether they like it or not. Singles in the charts leads to more radio airplay which leads to more people buying so in the end the artist/record label/apple make more money.
 
rockosmodurnlif said:
It'll be interesting to see what the reaction will be when they do this with the Beatles.
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um...

Considering the Beatles aren't coming out with any new material anytime soon, I reeeaaally doubt that will ever happen.

I gotta stand by Unspeaked here. Anybody who doesn't understand what this this service is is freaking illiterate. It's VERY easy to understand what you get (and why it is a good deal — if you are a Depeche Mode fan) if you READ THE ARTICLE.

For ****'s sake.

However:

Doctor Q said:
Personally, I can imagine making a "pass purchase" for only a couple of artists, for whom I prefer online purchases to CDs and for whom I have routinely purchased all music. But... I'm interested only in real music releases. Given the extras they include, such as "video exclusives", I might end up paying more than I would have for just the music, even though they consider it a savings. I guess I have my own fear of the unknown!
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A legitimate concern! Yeah, not knowing what you're getting is the tricky part here. I would like any new MUSIC from a bunch of bands, but videos? Not so much. (I'm not that interested in remixes, either.)

Other than that, the only way this differs from pre-ordering a super-mega-album is that the stuff doesn't all come out at the same time — kind of like a season pass that way. Hence the name.

(Really, people. It's not that complicated.)
 
This is getting absurd.

First of all dismissing a band - whoever it is - that sells 100 million albums and played to over 3 million people on their last world tour is idiotic.

Secondly, someone posted a couple of options. A third might be particular to this website: time and time again, we have nerdy, Apple-fan-boys who reply first and think later on all threads. There may be a reason why so many here have misinterpreted this simple delivery method, and every music forum and piece of press I have read today with the same information hasn't.

Thirdly, Depeche are a band that have been going for nearly 30 years. Aside from any musical opinion you have, they have a famous, music industry known set of loyal fans who will buy it regardless -- in the same way many here downloaded Safari 4 beta before waiting for a full release, or bought the iPhone on day of release. Depeche as a 30 year old band have built up a certain degree of credit in bank for their fans that they'll be happy to stump up first.

For parallels look at Amazon (US) today. The No 1 selling album: U2's unreleased No Line on the Horizon! Only the journalists have heard anything other than the single. So are Amazon idiots for letting U2 fans make them so much money?? Absurd.

Finally - and it will be my finally - this is a new delivery method for Depeche Mode fans and them only. Don't like the band, deal with it. Apple and iTunes is a business, and they are tying up deals with Depeche as their last two exclusives over the last four years proved highly profitable.

This is the start. And it's playing off, Depeche is now No 1 in a few of the European iTunes stores, and you can argue as much as you like about musical taste, but you can't argue against money making in these tough times.
 
It's the tv show's "season pass" but for music...

Which makes little no sense... :rolleyes:

This will go over like a lead balloon with 99% of consumers because it is so unclear what you are getting when you pay.

(Well, I was an episode of Mythbusters where they were actually able to get a balloon made from lead to fly, but still).

I hope this wasn't Apple's idea because it is a stupid one. This will probably amount to about .00001% of iTunes music sales. It's on par for a record company though--they fundementally do not understand their own customers.
 
I don't see the value in this, but then again I'm not a big enough fan to buy any bands album without hearing and liking 3-4 tracks out of however many there are.

You're essentially paying extra for content that isn't guaranteed to come. They take your extra money and wait until week 16 to put out additional content and you won't get it as part of the pass.

I agree with what others have said.. I won't buy without listening to the music first. I have the same policy with any band, even my favorite ones because they very often release songs I don't like.
 
iSee said:
It's the tv show's "season pass" but for music...

Which makes little no sense... :rolleyes:

This will go over like a lead balloon with 99% of consumers because it is so unclear what you are getting when you pay.
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If 1% of customers buy this, they might still consider it a success. One might think that there's no disadvantage to offering a new feature that only some customers will take advantage of, but I see a major disadvantage:

Every new option complicates life for consumers. Like many of you, I'm technically oriented and I've used the iTunes Store since it was created, so new features and incremental changes are no big deal and perhaps welcome.

But what used to be a simple store for buying songs and albums now involves music, videos, TV shows, podcasts, games, DRM or no DRM, ringtones, variable pricing, complete my album, upgrade my library, show me recommendations, sell me passes, and other features that make it more and more complicated. Increasingly, tech newbies and casual users are going to find it formidable to figure out, and that's bad for business.
 
bemayo said:
Wow, a personal attack! Congratulations on taking the low road. I am not going to debate a faceless person over who knows more about music, but I can assure you my "musical universe" is bigger than a bottle cap. I'd say your definition of pop is different than mine. IMHO, "pop" means popular music that is ear candy: it might taste good, but it's just empty calories. That doesn't match DM. Regardless, my point was that lumping Depeche Mode in with Katrina and the Waves is absurd. And it is (but you already knew that). If you want to make more personal aspersions, rock on. I'm abandoning this idiotic thread.
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Depeche Mode is a pop band.
 
dobomode said:
TAnd best of all, iTunes will email you when the new releases are up on the store ahead of general release date and automatically download everything.
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reldream said:
ON TOP OF ALL OF THIS...it ail automatically download these for you. No more getting onto iTunes and searching for any new music from your favorite bands.
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The description says you use the "Check for Available Downloads" menu choice to get the new content with an iTunes Pass, so it's apparently not as simple as opening iTunes and having downloads begin automatically. It's only a couple of extra clicks, but without truly automatic downloading it's important that you get the emails about new content, to make sure you don't miss something you are entitled to.
 
Jonny75 said:
This is getting absurd.

First of all dismissing a band - whoever it is - that sells 100 million albums and played to over 3 million people on their last world tour is idiotic.

Secondly, someone posted a couple of options. A third might be particular to this website: time and time again, we have nerdy, Apple-fan-boys who reply first and think later on all threads. There may be a reason why so many here have misinterpreted this simple delivery method, and every music forum and piece of press I have read today with the same information hasn't.

Thirdly, Depeche are a band that have been going for nearly 30 years. Aside from any musical opinion you have, they have a famous, music industry known set of loyal fans who will buy it regardless -- in the same way many here downloaded Safari 4 beta before waiting for a full release, or bought the iPhone on day of release. Depeche as a 30 year old band have built up a certain degree of credit in bank for their fans that they'll be happy to stump up first.

For parallels look at Amazon (US) today. The No 1 selling album: U2's unreleased No Line on the Horizon! Only the journalists have heard anything other than the single. So are Amazon idiots for letting U2 fans make them so much money?? Absurd.

Finally - and it will be my finally - this is a new delivery method for Depeche Mode fans and them only. Don't like the band, deal with it. Apple and iTunes is a business, and they are tying up deals with Depeche as their last two exclusives over the last four years proved highly profitable.

This is the start. And it's playing off, Depeche is now No 1 in a few of the European iTunes stores, and you can argue as much as you like about musical taste, but you can't argue against money making in these tough times.
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Amen, brother!

Beyond the point of whether this marketing tactic is good or not, I wanted to jump in on the musical relevance of DM.

First, a quibble: DM is pop, period. I listened to a lot of their music in the 80s, when they were relevant. I recommend adjusting the scale on your musical spectrum. If you think that DM is miles away from, say, Bauhaus, another 80s pop band that I loved, then your musical universe could fit into a bottle cap and should be expanded and diversified.
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I am going to get in trouble for saying this, but unfortunately most folks in the US have extremely narrow & stereotyped vision of DM. The band is usually described as has-been / 80's / new-wave / pop or something of that nature.

Go to any European & South American country and the picture will be dramatically different. DM are nothing short of the modern Beatles in Germany. Their European Summer stadium tour has been sold out for months now. Their last album was No. 1 in 17, I repeat 17, European countries. In the US, their tours have become relatively smaller these days but still sell out (3 sold out nights in LA last tour in Staples center, 2 at the Madison Square Garden in New York, etc.). Now, you tell me the band is irrelevant! But don't believe me, hear it from the rest of the artists, from Coldplay through Rammstein to Johny Cash, out there (the fact that Johny Cash covered DM should be enough for some of the ignorants around here to shut the xxxx up):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depeche_Mode#Legacy_and_influence

The way I see it, it's a bit like soccer and football. The US doesn't get soccer and the world doesn't get football. The US doesn't get DM, and the world doesn't get hip-hop. :D

Here is a link to the new single:

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=52704787
 
rockosmodurnlif said:
Why does it only have to be for new releases?
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You wouldn't buy this kind of pass for previously released material since it would already be in the store. You could buy it as a package if they had a deal going, but you wouldn't need a "pass".

Of course, deceased musicians somehow keep putting out albums so their music could in theory be sold with a pass. Jimi Hendrix died in 1970 but he came out with "Axis: Bold As Love (Holiday Edition)" just last November! But it's unlikely that people would want to sign up for a series of new releases of repackaged old material.
 
125.jpg
 
I am a fan of Depeche Mode, but did not realize they had a new album coming out until I saw this...some fan I am...LOL!

Anyway, I bought the Pass so I will see how it pans out. I had to agree to the iTunes crap again when I clicked on Buy Now.
 
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