Apple's Lead in U.S. Music Sales Continues to Increase as iTunes Gains and Wal-Mart Falls

[MrBlink]

I'm Glad

I know competition in the market is supposedly better for everyone and people sometimes get their stuff for $0.30 cheaper at Amazon or whatever, but the user experience totally sucks on those other sites and the only one I really want to see succeed is iTunes.

 

[ataboc]

forgive me for not knowing about this.

how do i find lossless music in the iTunes store?

lossy to lossless conversion? WTF?

that actually has me wondering. does anyone know if it's possible to regain lost audio data by running compression algorithms in reverse (in a manner of speaking)?

http://www.apple.com/itunes/features/

Encoding Imported Music
When you’re importing songs from a CD into iTunes, you can choose whether music is imported in AAC, AIFF, Apple Lossless, MP3, HE-AAC, or WAV format. Access your import settings in the Advanced section of iTunes preferences and choose your audio format, along with bit rates up to 320 Kbps.


not sure of where to find it in the store as I do not use the store.


Apple does give you the option to transcode lossy into lossless even though it is not possible. It is a lossy transcode labeled lossless.

 

[Salacion]

Google is destroying Apple in every battlefield it enters.....and now they are entering the online media business.

Google appears unstoppable.....

Destroying Apple? These exaggerative/idiotic comments are so annoying. SERIOUSLY!

 

[lilo777]

And the take-away from this chart is what? How many people waste money purchasing music on iTunes instead of Amazon? Advertisement does work! It's less clear though whether Apple actually earns more by selling music than Amazon because of the advertisement costs.

 

[col sandurz]

they do sell it.

they even give you an option to transcode lossy formats into lossless MAGICAL!

I was not aware of this. If you could transcode a lossy format into lossless (and it truly be lossless) then that would be magical. Once you take out data, you cant get it back. (Otherwise, transcoded DVDs would be just as good as BluRay)

Speaking of movies, I'm interested to see the stats on movie sales. Clearly the trend for music is shifting toward downloaded compressed (lossy) versions. But, it would be neat to know if this is the case with video as well. My personal impression is lossy video takes a bigger hit than lossy audio.

 

[MrBlink]

lossy vs lossless compression

forgive me for not knowing about this.

how do i find lossless music in the iTunes store?

lossy to lossless conversion? WTF?

that actually has me wondering. does anyone know if it's possible to regain lost audio data by running compression algorithms in reverse (in a manner of speaking)?

No. Playing back compressed music always means sort of "running the algorithms in reverse," or decompressing the info. When you decompress a lossy format to play it, some of the original data is not there. Hence - lossy. When you decompress a lossless format - the original data is all there. The lossless format only gets rid of redundant data in the compression process, where as the lossy format starts to completely erase small details.

The iTunes stuff is compressed at a pretty high data rate. One of my latest purchases is at 44.1 khz with a 256k bitrate. I'm pretty sure that's at least as good as a CD.

 

[macUser2007]

...

But the UI of apple is just so much better.

Which andriod device do you have?

I played with my buddy's droid and wasn't impressed. i had to go into settings to turn on wi-fi. i understand you can root the nexus1 and other devices to fully customize. I really do like the iphone.

I didn't like the pre-2.1 Android OS at all, but now with 2.1 and particularly with OS 2.2 I think it's damned close to the iPhone OS, plus it has Flash and it's open. I checked and Android also has virtually all the apps I use on my 3Gs.

I don't have an Android yet, was looking at the EVO, but it's still on OS 2.1, so now I'll wait for 2-3 months and get one of the upcoming Tegra 2 or Atom Z6

I like my (jailbroken) 3Gs, but I am kind of fed up with the restrictive Apple cr@p. Also, I want a bigger screen, and Flash

 

[akm3]

I personally despise buying any media from iTunes. I would much rather buy non-drm mp3's from Amazon. Don't get me wrong I'm an Apple fan...iPhone, multiple ipods, macbook pro but I root for the competition. I'm hoping someone can knock Apple down, not just a little but a lot. I don't want to watch movies or tv shows on my computer and I don't want to buy an Apple TV. I want to download movies and watch them on my TV using my WDTV or any other device. Other than iTunes Plus you a totally locked to Apple devices. I don't understand why more people aren't upset by this.

You know that iTunes music is DRM free too now right? I get the rest of your argument, but 'iTunes plus' is everything now (in the music side of the business).

I feel ya for movies and stuff, and certainly your point of keeping Apple from getting too big by patronizing competitors, but you seem to be saying iTunes music is still dragged down by FairPlay.

 

[GooMan]

1) I buy the vast majority of my music from the Amazon MP3 store. Main reason? It's usually cheaper.

2) 99.9999% of the people in the world don't give a rat's ass about lossless formats & I'm in that group. I just want to download the music I want and listen to it.

3)

...people sometimes get their stuff for $0.30 cheaper at Amazon or whatever, but the user experience totally sucks on those other sites and the only one I really want to see succeed is iTunes...

I use Amazon MP3, I click the "Buy MP3 album with 1 click" button and a downloader pops up that not only downloads all the songs for me but also adds it to iTunes for me. Yep, it totally sucks.

 

[ataboc]

I was not aware of this. If you could transcode a lossy format into lossless (and it truly be lossless) then that would be magical. Once you take out data, you cant get it back. (Otherwise, transcoded DVDs would be just as good as BluRay)

Speaking of movies, I'm interested to see the stats on movie sales. Clearly the trend for music is shifting toward downloaded compressed (lossy) versions. But, it would be neat to know if this is the case with video as well. My personal impression is lossy video takes a bigger hit than lossy audio.

you're right. i agree. It's hard to get sarcism accross on the internet.

there is no way to do it. but there's an option to convert into apple lossless.

i haven't checked in a while but if you right click on a song, you get an option to convert it.

 

[Jimmy James]

For most music I want to buy a physical CD. I can rip at whatever quality (higher) I want, it automatically becomes a backup copy (once ripped), and I can use it in environments that don't have ipod connectivity (although that's not really an issue anymore).

The only time I purchase from itunes is when I want individual songs from an album, which is rare.

 

[GamecockMac]

And the take-away from this chart is what? How many people waste money purchasing music on iTunes instead of Amazon? Advertisement does work! It's less clear though whether Apple actually earns more by selling music than Amazon because of the advertisement costs.

So now people who enjoy music are "wasting money" by purchasing it? Wow, your trolling truly knows no bounds.

And you're honestly sitting there with a straight face wondering if Apple actually earns more on their 21% of the market versus Amazon's 5%? I think that pretty much says it all with regard to the level of FUD you're willing to spew in your irrational hatred of all things Apple.

 

[lilo777]

http://www.apple.com/itunes/features/

Encoding Imported Music
When you’re importing songs from a CD into iTunes, you can choose whether music is imported in AAC, AIFF, Apple Lossless, MP3, HE-AAC, or WAV format. Access your import settings in the Advanced section of iTunes preferences and choose your audio format, along with bit rates up to 320 Kbps.


not sure of where to find it in the store as I do not use the store.


Apple does give you the option to transcode lossy into lossless even though it is not possible. It is a lossy transcode labeled lossless.

Well, as I understand, this only covers music imported from CDs. Can you get lossless music from iTunes store? I remember a few years back infamous allofmp3.com was not only selling music for much cheaper than everyone else but they also allowed customers to chose the bit rate or get a lossless file (the formats included MP3, Monkey's Audio, FLAC, OptimFrog, WAV and lossless WMA).

So now people who enjoy music are "wasting money" by purchasing it? Wow, your trolling truly knows no bounds.

And you're honestly sitting there with a straight face wondering if Apple actually earns more on their 21% of the market versus Amazon's 5%? I think that pretty much says it all with regard to the level of FUD you're willing to spew in your irrational hatred of all things Apple.

What does enjoying music have to do with wasting money? You are confused (and enthusiastically so). I though it was perfectly clear that when some one buys a song from iTunes for $1 instead of buying the same song from Amazon for, say, $0.80 he or she wastes 20 cents. Do you really disagree with this? I know for some "loving Apple" is priceless but still.

 

[Lord Vader]

Being open or closed is not an advantage or disadvantage it all depends on how you use.

 

[alhedges]

So now people who enjoy music are "wasting money" by purchasing it? Wow, your trolling truly knows no bounds.

I think you need to reread what you quoted.

 

[rstansby]

It's never a good thing for consumers when a single company gets a market share this high.

15 years ago Walmart had the power to censor media because of their high market share, now it is Apple's turn.

 

[adiosjefe]

Yep.

Jobs pissed off a lot of people lately. For me, the Flash thing was the last straw - I'll continue to buy Apple desktop stuff, because nobody else does design as well, but will move my mobile use to Android (including tablet).

And while I used to push everyone I knew to buy the iPhone, now I am pushing them to Android. "Look ma, it does the REAL WEB!"

So, I'd guess the Google Music Store will take off like gangbusters, because Android will definitely eat rapidly into the iPhone's share.

All these Android phone users will be buying music from somewhere. And then add to them the Google TV users. And then the Google Tablet users....

Yep, music is one more chance to stick it to Steve The Megalomaniac.

I agree, it's hard to beat Apple's notebooks and desktops. I have a company provided iPhone 3GS and recently purchased the HTC Incredible for myself and I absolutely love it. The Sense UI is fantastic. If it weren't for the large investment I have in iPhone apps I could see dumping the iPhone for the Incredible. The only problem with Android apps is some of the apps aren't quite as good as the iPhone app. For example, Doodle Jump isn't as good on the Android. They will get there though. I'm looking forward to seeing the next iPhone. Hopefully it's more than what we've seen in the leaks because if it's not Android and WM7 will take a huge chunk away for Apple. Google is innovative all year when it comes to Android where Apple launches a new iPhone once a year.

 

[GamecockMac]

What does enjoying music have to do with wasting money? You are confused (and enthusiastically so). I though it was perfectly clear that when some one buys a song from iTunes for $1 instead of buying the same song from Amazon for, say, $0.80 he or she wastes 20 cents. Do you really disagree with this? I know for some "loving Apple" is priceless but still.

Yes, I am confused. Where did your post mention anything about music always being cheaper on Amazon versus iTunes? Believe it or not, people who read these forums aren't psychic, we don't know what crazy thoughts are going on in your head.

Regardless, if someone prefers to do their shopping at iTunes, for reasons of convenience or whatever, it's up to them to determine whether it's a "waste" or not, it doesn't fall to haters like you to make that judgment call.

 

[sishaw]

What does enjoying music have to do with wasting money? You are confused (and enthusiastically so). I though it was perfectly clear that when some one buys a song from iTunes for $1 instead of buying the same song from Amazon for, say, $0.80 he or she wastes 20 cents. Do you really disagree with this? I know for some "loving Apple" is priceless but still.

Well, it depends. Is the encoding as good on Amazon? Is it in MP3 format or AAC format (AAC sounds better at a given bitrate)? Is it as conveniently integrated with iTunes? These are all valid choices. So is spending less. But neither is spending more a waste, nor spending less being stingy. It is all a matter of how you stack your values.

 

[rstansby]

I was not aware of this. If you could transcode a lossy format into lossless (and it truly be lossless) then that would be magical. Once you take out data, you cant get it back. (Otherwise, transcoded DVDs would be just as good as BluRay)

It is called lossless. That means that when you transcode the file from a lossy format you don't lose anything more. It does not mean that you regain data that was on the original recording. There is no loss between the MP3 and the apple lossless version. The loss happened when the original file was converted to MP3.

 

[johnnymg]

Up to 50 billion cash in the bank. But what good to do with it?

SJ is paranoid after what happened to Apple in the mid-late 80's. His #1 goal is to build a mountain of cash.

 

[col sandurz]

It's hard to get sarcism accross on the internet.

there is no way to do it. but there's an option to convert into apple lossless.

i haven't checked in a while but if you right click on a song, you get an option to convert it.

Righto on the sarcasm bit. I guess I should have paid more attention to the all caps MAGICAL.

Does this right click work for purchased songs? I did not know they were sold lossless.

MrBlink mentioned that you can get audio at 256 kbit/s which is a little over 1/6th the bitrate of uncompressed CD audio (1.4 Mbit/s)[source Wikipedia]. Not sure this difference is all that noticable (to most), as others have pointed out. Particularly as the MP3 standard and AAC have become more sophisticated.

I'm curious if this trend will continue to video, as all the detractors of Apple adopting BluRay like to argue. I appears there is a bigger hit to quality with downloaded video.

To compare stats, traditional iTunes video is encoded at 540 kbit/s with 128 devoted to the audio. That is 1/4 the bitrate of MPEG1 DVD (1.8 Mbit/s). It is 1/20 the bitrate of full quality MPEG2 DVD (9.8 Mbit/s). HD content is encoded at 1.5 Mbit/s (not sure how much goes to audio). Bluray has a bitrate of 36 to 54 Mbit/s (leaving iTunes content compressed down to about 1/30th to 1/20th the space). May I also mention that unlike CD audio, DVD and Bluray data are already compressed standard.

 

[pika2000]

iTunes has the best music selection. I mean come on, does Amazon or Zune marketplace have J-Pop or K-Pop songs? Yeah, take that!
The only problem is, there are still a lot of J/K-Pop not available in iTunes US, obviously due to the recording industries' ancient business model. My wish is that I hope iTunes grows so big, that Apple can persuade Avex to put the same catalog between iTunes Japan and US.

 

[j-traxx]

yuck. this means most people buying music today are purchasing butchered compressed versions of what they'd be getting with a real CD.

dear apple,

START SELLING LOSSLESS MUSIC!

what kind of speakers do you have? does it really make a huge difference on your ipod? unless your headphones cost as much as an ipad then it isnt going to make the gods of audio end the world. lossless for home consumption is a cool idea but with everything going mobile, that isnt where the smart money is.

 

[j-traxx]

iTunes has the best music selection. I mean come on, does Amazon or Zune marketplace have J-Pop or K-Pop songs? Yeah, take that!
The only problem is, there are still a lot of J/K-Pop not available in iTunes US, obviously due to the recording industries' ancient business model. My wish is that I hope iTunes grows so big, that Apple can persuade Avex to put the same catalog between iTunes Japan and US.

hey did you get the BoA deluxe album?