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Apple Cuts Some iTunes Song Previews From 90 Seconds to 30 Seconds

I don't understand how Apple always has issues with licensing. These other guys like Pandora have music they're letting people stream for dirt cheap, and no oddly restricted artists like Led Zeppelin (iTunes Radio has no Led Zeppelin).
 
east85 said:
People still download songs from iTunes? Mainly a streamer here.

If I want to buy music I'll usually go with the whole shabang and get the artwork and all, preferably limited vinyl with some character.
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Yes. If I like a song playing on iTunes Match, I buy it.
 
Meh, I've always found even 90 seconds inadequate anyway since some of the songs I listen to can change radically over the whole song, I prefer to listen to a song elsewhere e.g. Youtube, spotify, etc. Before I consider getting it.
 
MICHAELSD said:
I feel like this is in an early attempt to entice users to join Apple's streaming service, if and when they convert Beats Music to iMusic or whatever they need to call it. Previously, I'd admittedly just listen to a 90-second preview if I had to hear a certain track on my iPhone since I'm in between streaming services at the moment.
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I think you're seriously overestimating the amount of users who have been content with 90 second sample clips as their streaming service.

You'd have to be some sort of financially ruined hardcore Apple fanatic who refused to just listen to that song on YouTube, or Spotify shuffle the album and wait for the song to come up.
 
to those claiming that 90s covers 'one verse and one chorus', well it seems a narrow-minded view to me. sure if you listen to 3min pop songs exclusively... but what about (as an example) dance music tracks with 60s intros of just beats. is that enough to make up your mind that it's even the right version of the track? not for me, which is why i appreciated the longer previews.
 
I'm a Spotify Premium subscriber. Can't imagine ever going back to buying music - I listen to so much and so different music, that I could never purchase it all. Streaming is the absolute best solution for me, especially if I can save favorite tracks/playlists for offline. I gladly pay 7 euros per month for this.

Even if iTunes eventually offer proper streaming, I'm not going back. I have invested time in creating many personal playlists and I love that Spotify is not locked in a single platform.
 
90 seconds is kind of long for a 'preview' anyway. That's almost half the length of most songs. How about they give all songs a 45 or 60-second preview and just leave it at that?
 
They could make them 2 minutes long and people would still need to buy the whole song to hear it, is this supposed to be security? Who's going to rip 90 seconds of a song
 
RolyPolyBird said:
lol since when did DJs source from iTMS?
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I didn't know there were a set of "rules" I had to follow when buying my performance music.
Can you please link that for me?

Now, if you're pretending that I don't know how to use DJ blogs for free music, that's fine, I hope you feel super smart, but when it comes to commercial music, I have no respect for DJs who "source" their music for free.
 
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I just read about this on the blog this morning. I don't know why Apple made this move but nothing to be done about it but live with it.
 
60 seconds would probably be best -- but anyone could hear a song in its duration on YouTube or somewhere else. Best is to get the CD and bring it in Apple lossless. You could then always convert it down to 256k AAC if you wanted.
 
east85 said:
People still download songs from iTunes? Mainly a streamer here.

If I want to buy music I'll usually go with the whole shabang and get the artwork and all, preferably limited vinyl with some character.
Click to expand...

Exactly. iTunes business model is as quaint as buying a CD single.

:apple:
 
I have always found the preview to be a bit strange. You can go to youtube and other places to hear the song in its entirty. Never understood why Apple did not allow that. Essentially I have to go somewhere else to hear the song and then come back to iTunes to purchase the song. That is not Apple like to force me to go outside the walls. Now that its back to 90 seconds its better, but the problem remains even if less painful.
 
OtherJesus said:
I didn't know there were a set of "rules" I had to follow when buying my performance music.
Can you please link that for me?

Now, if you're pretending that I don't know how to use DJ blogs for free music, that's fine, I hope you feel super smart, but when it comes to commercial music, I have no respect for DJs who "source" their music for free.
Click to expand...

Oh come on, there are a ton of reasons why a DJ sourcing from iTMS is problematic, it comes down to professional standards.

And I was in no way hinting that a DJ should pirate.
 
Although i did like the fact that it was 90 seconds i think Apple has made a big mistake here. Now with Spotify, Pandora, and other services that are readily available it is going to be very hard to sell music to customers in the near future. The long preview was probably a better way to sell music to consumers.
 
east85 said:
People still download songs from iTunes? Mainly a streamer here.
Click to expand...

Yes. Yes they do.

Streaming is like renting a house. After paying all your monthlies, you still don't own anything in the end. And also, the landlord can find some excuse to kick you out on a whim.

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Anthony T said:
90 seconds is kind of long for a 'preview' anyway. That's almost half the length of most songs. How about they give all songs a 45 or 60-second preview and just leave it at that?
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The Oscar Meyer Wiener song is only 14 seconds long.
 
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