Published
Wed, Aug 30, 2006, 04:25
- Is this the iTunes killer? The world’s largest music label is to make its vast collection available for download this December for free.
Is this the iTunes killer? It’s been a long time coming, but it’s finally on its way. Universal, the world’s largest record label, is the first of the major labels to make its vast collection of music available for download for free, starting this December. A deal has been struck with startup company SpiralFrog, who plan to support the service by revenue from advertising.
The move represents a departure from previous online music models such as Itunes and Beatport, which charge per download, or subscription-based music services such as eMusic. Download charges at iTunes average £0.79 or $0.99 per track.
Whether Spiralfrog's free model will prompt a rethink at pay sites remains to be seen. Currently Itunes has a whopping 70% share of the download market, and approximately 30% of dance music downloads.
As well as Universal's catalogue, which includes artists such as Stevie Wonder, The Orb, Johnny Cash and Kanye West, SpiralFrog also plan to offer music on independent labels and video content for download.
The service will initially be available only in the United States and Canada, and downloaded tracks will be encrypted with digital rights management, which limits the number of times a song can be copied or the number of devices it can play on.
Ovum analyst Michele Mackenzie said: "There is no mention of which audio codec or DRM solution will be used, although it is very likely that the record labels will insist on some DRM being in place.”
"Offering young consumers an easy-to-use alternative to pirated music sites will be compelling," said Robin Kent, SpiralFrog’s chief executive. "SpiralFrog will offer those consumers a better experience and environment than they can get from any pirate site."
The market for legal digital downloads reached £575 million pounds ($1.1 billion US dollars) last year, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry.
Despite the growth in the legit market, it is still dwarfed by the illegal download trade. According to the IFPI, for every song bought legally on the internet, 40 are downloaded illegally.