iTunes Unlimited to be announced at September iPod event?

Wed, 08/20/2008 - 3:09pm — Seth Weintraub
2529

The Financial Times reported last March that Apple was in the midst of lining studios up for an unlimited subscription plan to offer iTunes customers at a flat rate.  Jordan Golson at the Industry Standard is reporting that numerous websites have been receiving word that this is set to go down soon, with half of the currently available iTunes library at subscriber's disposal.

 

The subscription will be for one-year and be available through iTunes or a retail box, similar to how MobileMe/DotMac is sold. The subscription would cost $129.99 on its own, $179.99 with MobileMe or $99.99 for existing MobileMe subscribers. The site claims a late September announcement with late October rollout, just in time for the holiday season.

We know there will be an iPod event next month.  What better time to announce the service?  Would any of you be interested in this type of service to go along with MobileMe?  It might just fit into the master plan.

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Comments

Sign me up!!!!

2026

I would love this. I'm already a MobileMe subscriber. So that would come to a little over $8 a month for unlimited music. I know a lot of people want to "own" their music. But I could care less, I can't afford to buy everything I'd like to listen to. I'll sign up they day this happens, if it happens.

Wow! All I can say is wow!!!

2620

All the "Windows" geeks that rip on ipods, this is one of the main arguments. I could have it either way, but options - Options are always good.

I can't even fathom the market share Apple would start to hold. Wow!

oh mahgawd

2922

Well holding out for the next better thing from apple seems to have paid off i didnt even renew my ipod since the original one and now im starting university which is going to be mostly paid by my parents (thanks mom and dad) but since im going part-time for my firt year im still getting a student loan and im gonna work so i can buy myself a nice
top of the line macbook pro
time capsule
iwork
mobileme
an phone
and unlimited music on my iphone and brand new macbook pro

OH MY GAWD IM SOOOOOO EXCITED. the fact that im gonna be gettng all these new toys at the same time just makes this unreal I can hardly wait. Though i am because i want the new version of the macbook pro. OH MY GOD

im a poor student:( i have

2120

im a poor student:(

i have only a mac mini

two or more years old

ok i shouldn't drink so much and i should work more, maybe i will finally have some money for my jesusPhone

Maybe at college you can

2825

Maybe at college you can learn how to talk and a little bit about punctuation. Reading that run on paragraph was disgusting.

On comment above, The Onion

2519

On comment above, The Onion predicted the future!!!

http://www.theonion.com/content/news/local_idiot_to_post_comment_on

i dont like subscribtions at

2724

i dont like subscribtions at all. of course, choice is always good, but when i pay for something (yeah i do it pretty rarely, but sometimes i do), i want to really HAVE it, to be able to play it how many times i want, to play it after one year or five years - or 20 years

apple is not really going away from DRM as they promised:(

and i bet all these apple fanatics (like that d**k from roughlydrafted) who always said "noone uses subscription so its actually good that apple doesnt offer it ROFL" will now shout "omg omg subcription is the best thing evar ROFL"

oh whatever

Lifetime Membership

2623

What about a lifetime membership? That way you can get music from wherever you want and it would all be paid for. Say I plan to live another 50 years, at $100 a year, that's $5,000. Maybe give me a little more of a discount. Make it around $4,400. That way my last 6 years are free! If I die I should be able to transfer my years over to someone else. If I live longer it shouldn't matter since I'll be so deaf from listening to all of that music.

Apple and DRM

2922

>apple is not really going away from DRM as they promised:(

Apple never promised to get rid of DRM. Apple implored the music companies to drop DRM.

Big difference. Apple has DRM free tracks on iTunes *from the companies that will allow it*.

You can still buy music on CD and rip it into iTunes, or buy DRM free music from other companies if you really have your panties in a bunch over it.

Me, personally, I buy the bulk of my music on CD, but I also buy songs from iTunes just for the convenience. That and Apple's DRM is some of the most liberal on the planet (use on up to 5 computers, unlimited iPods or iPhones, burn to CD, etc.)

Then again, why should the facts get in the way of a good rant towards Apple, eh?

And if it does work out at $99 a year for .Mac subscribers that will be way cheaper then any previous music subscription service - once again Apple is pushing the pricing of these services - down! Counter to the common complaint that Apple stuff is overpriced - sigh....

Eh...

2622

If they had a movie rental subscription service, ala Netflix, I'd be excited about that. I'm still not sure why that hasn't materialized yet. I mean, they have iTunes rentals, Apple TV, and a billion or so players for people to rent and watch movies on, taking them anywhere.

Everything is in place to deliver movies over the intertubes. I see that happening before music subscription.