U2 Back in Black iPod
by Charlie Amter
Oct 20, 2004, 6:35 PM PT
U2 is hoping consumers will find what they are looking for this fall--in the form of a special-edition Apple iPod loaded with the band's new album.
According to Forbes.com, the biggest band in the world has partnered with the computer company to not only hype U2's new single, but to sell a special edition black iPod preprogrammed with the group's forthcoming How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb.
Neither the band's label, Interscope Records, nor Apple would comment Wednesday on the report, although the deal is expected to become official next Tuesday, when U2's Bono and the Edge are scheduled to join Apple boss Steve Jobs for a press conference in San Jose, California.
In addition to U2's 11th studio record, due Nov. 23, the new customized iPod reportedly will come preloaded with some of the band's past catalog work--a digital greatest hits, of sorts. The customized black iPod will retail for $30 over the standard list price.
U2 is currently in heavy rotation in a series of TV spots that jointly promote Apple's iPod and iTunes Music Store and the band's new single, "Vertigo." (The track is currently number 44 on Billboard's Hot 100 and the most downloaded track on Apple's iTunes.) The band has previously made exclusive tracks available for download on the iTunes Music Store, which just last week announced that music fans have purchased and downloaded more than 150 million songs from the online store.
Music industry heavies are already proclaiming the new deal as a historic shift in music marketing.
"For U2, this is brilliant marketing," William Morris' Marc Geiger, who manages the Pixies and Nine Inch Nails, told E! Online Wednesday.
"[The commercial featuring "Vertigo"] is artistically credible and I think it sets the stage for future branding opportunities with companies like Apple," Geiger continued. "The U2-iPod deal doesn't compromise either brand, and it adds to both."
Anticipation is indeed running high for the new U2 studio set, and Apple executives are counting on capturing thirtysomething fans of the Irish band who have been pondering an iPod purchase--waiting for the right moment to buy.
The select few insiders who have heard the new material have been blown away. U2 fan site @U2 quotes VH1 Senior Vice President Bill Flanagan saying the record is "the best album they have ever done. It's going to knock [listeners] out."
The album's release will apparently not be impacted by the disappearance of an early version of the album. A compact disc containing unmixed versions of the tracks went missing from a recording studio in Nice, France, in July, prompting worries that the songs could be leaked to the Internet, potentially costing the quartet and Interscope millions in lost revenue. At the time, U2 said if leaked tracks began sprouting up on file-sharing sites, the band would rush-release the album on iTunes Music Store.
In other U2 news, Bono has been selected to receive the inaugural TED prize--a technology, entertainment and design award that includes $100,000 to be used to grant three wishes. The award will be presented at the annual TED conference, set for Feb. 23-26 in Monterey, California.
