When Napster became the biggest thing going some years ago, the
record companies were clearly peeved - peeved enough to sue the
company into extinction.
Of course, people loved the service. It provided free, easy access
to music. Downloads were free, and pretty much every type of music
could be found.
Many people considered Napster users to be thieves plain and
simple.
Defenses by people using Napster varied. Some said it allowed them
to sample songs before buying albums. Others claimed that it allowed
them to take the songs they liked and leave the garbage behind.
Either argument could be considered true.
It's also true that many people simply preferred getting something
for free.
One defense was that the music industry simply didn't have
anything remotely worth paying for. Let's face it, when you have a
simple way of tracking down music and getting what you want quickly
and for free, where's the logic in paying for something that performs
the same task in a slow
and frustrating manner?
The music industry has figured out the answer to that as people
more or less shun their online music services. By all accounts things
aren't going well for the industry online music sites. Check
this
review of PressPlay and Real1 for more details.
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Now, Apple
appears to be stepping into the pay for download action. After
hearing the news, many people expect great things. Apple is, after
all, the king of computing ease-of-use. Where the music industry has
made a mess, Apple will step forward to show them how it's done.
I personally don't have any doubts that Apple will provide a great
music buying experience. They just seem to have a knack for putting
the user first (when it comes to software anyway).
Of course, if Apple does come up with a great, usable, and
sensible music download system, will they come? While studies show
that people
are quite willing to pay to download music, this may be the
true test. Previously, users could simply say the music-industry
sponsored systems just weren't worth the trouble. Now, however, that
excuse will likely evaporate.
An easy-to-use system providing access to a great variety of music
at a reasonable price is what people are clamoring for. If Apple
delivers this and people still balk, it will become clear: Free is
better than pay.
If Apple delivers the service that everyone wants, Mac users are
clearly going to be the litmus test for pay-to-download services in
general. Success here will likely mean success elsewhere. And the
spotlight will be on Apple once again.
Stephen Van
Esch is the founder and president of
the
E-learning Foundry, an online training
resource for Mac users. Steve loves the Mac and is doubly bilingual,
since he's also fluent in Windows and French.
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