Music Download Inconsistency Syndrome (MDIS), and "The Cure"

What's a consumer to do? Here's the scenario, I wanted to buy and download the new album by The Cure. So I started to dig around the top music download stores, and my impulse to buy was drowned out by my aggravation with the Music Industry.

In my quest to figure out which site had the album for the best price, I began to wonder - why should the price vary at all? Shouldn't I just be able to go to my preferred store, buy the album download, and know I didn't get ripped off? There aren't any costs associated with shipping and shelving physical products here.

No you can't, and this appears to have something to do with ill-conceived price manipulation on the part of the music industry to 'level the playing field' for other music download retailers. But it's really just leveling my willingness to commit to a purchase. Here's are the confusing price variations I found when looking for that new album:

Album in question: The Cure, 4:13 Dream
	iTunes	Amazon.com	Walmart.com
Cost for album	$9.99	$8.99	$9.22
Cost per track	$0.99	$0.99	$0.94
Format	AAC	MP3	MP3
DRM?	Yes	No**	No**
Quality***	Medium	High	High
Album savings	$2.88	$3.88	$3.00

For this particular album, it looks like Amazon is the way to go - but that isn't the case for every album. And what if I only want a few tracks? Anyway, it seems disingenuous that Apple supposedly had to threaten to close down the iTunes store to keep the per-track price of music downloads from going up - only to then see Walmart launch weeks later with tracks for as little as $0.74+. And now that other stores offer DRM-free MP3s, why isn't all new music on iTunes offered in a $0.99/track iTunes Plus format? Anyway, sorry for the particularly geeky rant - but come on, you aren't going to win the war on illegal downloads with these kinds of consumer unfriendly strategies.

*not an "iTunes Plus" offering
**Amazon tags it's MP3s with a unique ID code in the metadata, Walmart - unknown
***iTunes Protected AAC is 128kpbs, MP3s can be VBR but approx. twice the bit rate of protected AAC

Album Cover Designers: The New Iconographers

When I was younger, I distinctly recalled noticing the dilemma faced, by album cover designers, when cassette tapes were introduced. Going from the large format LP to the small awkwardly vertical cassette cover had a big impact on design solutions. The CD reintroduced a canvas more square in shape but still diminutive compared to a real "album cover". Fast forward to today and you can see the latest challenge for album cover designers, the digital version of album art. Digital music players like iPod and Zune, that can now display album art, have reintroduced the importance of design and branding in music. There was a stretch there, where artwork was not so easily attached to the digital music. Apple's Coverflow (purchased from original creator steelskies) reintroduced the metaphor of browsing through a pile of records, albeit very tiny records .

How will this change trends in album art design? Will there be bolder, larger, simpler designs? Or is this no different from the challenges faced by traditional LP cover designers who aimed to make a large format record stand out on a shelf in a record store? We shall see, but I expect to notice a greater influence as album art designers start thinking like icon designers. One recent example, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails just released a free full length recording "The Slip". Like his last free album before it (Ghosts), each song has its own piece of artwork associated with it. 10 'covers', and a PDF booklet for one 'album'- now that's something new.

Welcome to Applebucks Store, would you like a Venti iPod with your Grande Mac & Tall Latte?

OK, so Amazon is now selling high quality DRM-Free MP3s. This must mean that any moment now Steve is going to flip the switch and all songs sold by Apple will be "iTunes Plus" but will cost $.99 (or even less, to compete with Amazon's range of .99-.89/song). Right? So, come on Steve... Steve?

Well if Apple doesn't do something soon, before Amazon grows its selection, then the iTunes store could become the overpriced big box of the internet. Could it be that Apple loves Starbucks, because they sell coffee at higher prices, than say Dunkin' Donuts? (That's a Boston joke)

When Apple originally released iTunes Plus, I was not impressed. I was already getting a lot of music I wanted from eMusic, despite the limited selection. Between eMusic, and now Amazon, there's a strong possibility that you can now legitimately purchase most of the music you want in non-DRM form at great prices. Basically, these sites offer the real iTunes Plus, the version consumers actually want.

Apple needs to deliver iTunes Plus style product, at normal or cheaper prices or it will surely loose all but the most naive customers. Let's hope that having more expensive music downloads doesn't actually become an Apple strategy, inspired by its budding relationship with a certain Seattle Coffee retailer. You may be able argue that a mocha at Starbucks tastes better than the average Joe. But there's no arguing that a 128kbps Protected AAC file that costs $.99, sounds better than a non-DRM 256kpbs MP3 file for $.89 - even if it's served in an iTunes cup...