Apple's "unlimited music bundle" could be a game changer
If Apple can pull the trigger on a potential deal with major music companies to offer a “radical new business model that would give customers free access to its entire iTunes music library in exchange for paying a premium for its iPod and iPhone devices,” it could be a game changer.
The fact that music companies are even considering this deal shows you the very real and dire straits that they’re in. Music is alive and well and doing great, but the industry is crumbling, and we might be seeing a new order rising from the ashes very shortly.
Part of the equation for consumers is whether or not they’re willing to forego “ownership” of music for a model where they have access to a huge library with the ability to “keep” only selected tracks. This path also is somewhat contrary to the current trend of eliminating DRM from downloaded tracks. Instead of offering unlimited acces, the somewhat ironically termed “unlimited music bundle” model would tie access to the iTunes library to select Apple devices. In other words, you can listen to the entire iTunes library, but only on your iPhone or iPod. (And perhaps for only limited periods of time, like 30 days or so before the download “expires”?)
MG Siegler notes that this deal could be a way for Apple to jack up prices on highly profitable iPods by leveraging the less profitable iTunes Store. And the price point will also be crucial – where will the upfront and monthly cost come in and how willing will consumers be in shelling out for it?
Some notes on numbers from Valleywag: “Labels are looking to get as much as $100 from iPod buyers and $8 a month from iPhone subscribers. Both sides are really fighting over how much of the profit from music they’ll keep.”
As for me, I just got Sirius satellite radio recently and I’m loving it. Maybe I’m just at the age and level of business where it’s really nice to be able to stream in great music across a wide variety of channels without taking the effort to hunt for it on my own. Or maybe I’m part of that evolution of consumers who can begin to live without ownership of music?
Just don’t take my Pointer Sisters cassette tape away from me. Sometimes you just gotta do the Neutron Dance.
