Apple to Unveil Windows Online Music
2 hours, 57 minutes ago
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By MAY WONG, AP Technology Writer
SAN JOSE, Calif. - For a few months, Apple Computer Inc. enjoyed its own lofty spot in the legitimate online music world. Not anymore.
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When Apple dives into a broader market with a Windows-compatible version of its iTunes Music Store on Thursday, it will join a growing list of rivals, including Napster, MusicMatch, Rhapsody, and soon also Dell, America Online and Amazon.
Apple officials would not discuss details of the launch, but analysts and record industry sources expect the Windows rendition to mirror the successful Macintosh version that kick-started the latest influx of legal song download services.
Apple won generous licensing terms from all five major record labels for its online music store, which has sold more than 10 million tracks since its April 28 debut.
Songs are 99 cents per download or $9.99 per album. Users can copy, or "burn," single songs onto CDs an unlimited number of times, but not more than 10 times with the same playlist. Customers can transfer purchased songs to up to three computers and to Apple's iPod portable music player.
Record companies have since doled out similar usage rules to other services, and though some have larger music libraries than others today, industry analysts expect that all the digital music outlets will eventually have similar catalogs.
So the challenge lies in how the services differentiate themselves.
"We have a bunch of very comparable services each with their own natural constituencies, and the ability to market to their constituencies is what will determine their success," said Josh Bernoff, a Forrester Research analyst.
Early bets on front-runners so far are going to Napster, Apple and MusicMatch — Napster for its deep brand recognition from its freewheeling song-swapping days, MusicMatch for its built-in connection to the widely used Windows Media Player, and Apple for its seamless integration with its popular iPod portable music player.
U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster predicts that with the added Windows version, iTunes will gain 20 percent of the online music market, and Napster about 30 percent.
The iPod, which is compatible with both Macintosh and Windows computers, is the top selling hard drive-based portable music player, according to market research firms IDC and the NPD Group.
Apple already has spent millions of dollars on a marketing campaign for the iPod, and analysts say the ads easily can become promotions for the online music store. Like other services, the iTunes Music Store also is vying for unique content from artists to help draw sales.
On Wednesday night, the rock bands Thursday and Thrice will perform at the Apple retail stores in New York City and Santa Monica, respectively, recording material that will be sold exclusively on the Apple online music store.
