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iTunes Music Store opens song vaults

updated 07:30 am EDT, Wed May 12, 2004

iTMS opens song vaults


Apple's is leading the company to dig up music that's out-of-print, never been available in a digital format, released only overseas, or simply forgotten, Wired reports. "Even Steve [Jobs] himself will occasionally send me an e-mail pointing me in the direction of a missing album or artist that he's looking for, and we'll go and find it," said Alex Luke, director of music programming and label relations for iTunes. Adds Barry Ritholtz, a market strategist with Maxim Group, a money-management firm. "It's probably a bit much to say Jobs is saving the music industry, but he's showing them the way into the digital age. They have been stumbling around drunk in the dark."


by MacNN Staff

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  1. chas_m

    Fresh-Faced Recruit

    Joined: Aug 2001

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    05/12, 07:53am | report spam | Reply |

    It's true ...

    I've been able to find things on iTMS that have been out of print or otherwise hard to find for YEARS.

    Now if I could just get Steve to listen/appreciate more obscure 80s new wave ... :)

  1. CambAngst

    Forum Regular

    Joined: Aug 2003

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    05/12, 07:53am | report spam | Reply |

    Yup...

    "It's probably a bit much to say Jobs is saving the music industry, but he's showing them the way into the digital age. They have been stumbling around drunk in the dark."

    Don't think I could have said it any better, myself.

  1. LouZer

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    Joined: Nov 2000

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    05/12, 08:29am | report spam | Reply |

    Hmmm

    A few years ago, they were touting print-on-demand for books as a way to get anything published, and to get anything in print, even if the publisher hadn't produced a run in decades because there wasn't a large demand for it. Seemed like everyone thought it was a great idea.

    Same seems to hold true for music. Wonder how come the labels can't come around and see this as a boon, rather than a problem.

  1. typoon

    Addicted to MacNN

    Joined: Oct 1999

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    05/12, 09:31am | report spam | Reply |

    YES YES YES

    This is Great for everyone now if the record industry would stop shooting themselves in the foot and just get behind iTMS instead of coming out with there own services we could have something really really great here.

  1. phowson

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    Joined: May 2000

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    05/12, 09:41am | report spam | Reply |

    Drunken idiots

    "Wonder how come the labels can't come around and see this as a boon, rather than a problem."

    I wonder if that might have something to do with them being afraid of getting cut out of the distribution loop if independent artists suddenly realize that they can get a bigger piece of the pie by doing their own distribution. They might not get into Best Buy, Tower Records, etc., but if people are buying their music on line, who cares.

    The really stupid part is that iTMS and similar on line catalogs are offering the labels a way to sell their music, even music that they had previously written off as not worth the cost of reissuing, for only slightly less than they would get for a CD but without the costs of pressing CDs, printing inserts, packing all that stuff up and shipping it around the world.

    The big players in the music industry should be seeing this as an opportunity to use their muscle to sign new, untested acts given that the cost of launching those acts has been dramatically reduced. They are focusing on a set of perceived pitfalls so strenuously that they don't seem to have the time or energy to see the huge possibilities. I have a sneaking suspicion that somewhere in the back of their minds is the possibility that they may have to work for their money for a change.

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