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Subscription service will become more mainstream with Apple on board. at ~$9/month, it's viable.

If I read this rumor correctly, not sure if I dig the 1 year lock-in, though. Would like to have the option of a one month trial.

Aug 20, 08 - 08:17 am Comment from: MadMac

NOW everyone will change their tune and say that subscriptions are cool now that STEVE is doing it.

Hypocrites (I see into future)

Very detailed info. Seems very likely, especially in combination with the expected new WiFi iPods (and existing iPhones) that can stream the new subscribtion streams...

This would be great! I hope it's true. I've long wanted to subscribe to iTunes to find songs I could later *BUY*. I just hate buying some itunes songs to find out I don't really like it.

Subscriptions, oh the first sign of change. SIGN ME UP for that free subscription service.....

I can wish!

Watch out Dell and the FORMER Apple guy, that BERG is a coming...... is the crows nest asleep? Or without those bi-noculars in the HMS DELL's captians desk?

Watch out for popping rivets....

I would have expected an MDN-take saying that subscription-models will never work...

Rent more cowbell?

Count me out of any subscription service thank you.

Sounds like complete crap to me. Apple have said time and time again they don't think the subscription option works, and the success (failure) of other subscription services show that.

Also, the iDisk / MobileMe / iPhone just doesn't add up at all, from a technical level, or a usability level. Enabling "disk use" on an iPod is nothing to do with iDisk.

The first sounds interesting (disk-mode and OTA idisk) but I'm not interested in subscription music. Even if it is Apple doing it (whoop-tee-doo), I'm still not interested. Subscription is of the RIAA.

Aug 20, 08 - 08:45 am Comment from: Tommy Boy

Because it mentioned subscriptions and didn't mention laptops I know it's not true.

Aug 20, 08 - 08:47 am Comment from: shen

subscription = complete and total crap. give me the 256 bit rate songs and no DRM, sure, but pay per year for songs over and over? no tnx k bai.

if that is all Apple can do to improve the iTMS, i will disappointed.

now if i can access my iDisk from my phone. ok, that will be useful!

Aug 20, 08 - 08:49 am Comment from: JadisOne

I'll gladly keep purchasing my music as I see fit. I don't need yet another perpetual bill to add to my budget.

Aug 20, 08 - 08:52 am Comment from: Predrag

Yes, Steve Jobs said many, many times that people prefer to rent their movies and own their music, which doesn't prevent him from offering movies for sale and music for rent. MDN's take doesn't dispute the fact that "business models that fly in the face of reason are doomed to failure". This is why iTunes business model is founded on music for SALE.

That Real (Rhapsody) and Napster are still in business, after all these years offering subscriptions, says that a small fraction of the population might actually be interested in renting music. There is no reason why Apple should cede that market to inferior people. Let's not forget; every single person who currently wants to subscribe to unlimited music CANNOT use an iPod. Therefore, Apple is not only losing several hundred thousand annual subscribers to the iTunes subscription service, it is also losing on several hundred thousand unsold iPods.

As for music subscription concept itself, a (somewhat reasonable) argument might be made for teenagers. When you're a teen, you listen to your current teen music idols. Once you grow up, you become embarrased by your teen musical taste. As we know, teen is a pretty important demographic group for music labels. Allowing them to pay subscription while they're teens for the music they'll only listen for a few years would make some sense.

Ironically, Apple will rapidly take away market share from all those other subscription services and come to dominate that field as well.

Aug 20, 08 - 08:58 am Comment from: Predrag

And MDN's take is still consistent: Apple should offer it IF, and only IF, it makes business sense. And today, it does. Anyone here who doesn't like it can safely ignore it (just like I'll be ignoring MobileMe for the time being). Those who've been waiting, looks like your wait may be coming to an end. Get ready to buy that iPod now.

Nope. Not me. 99 cents for a download that you keep and do with what you want...period.
If however it was $99.00 dollars a year for unlimited songs you get to keep and do with what you want then I would go for that.

If not, then 99 cents for one permanent download. I don't care how cool Steve Jobs is. This one won't fly.

Aug 20, 08 - 09:04 am Comment from: CYxodus

@MadMac

You're blasting Apple users based on a rumor? I don't think we're the hypocrites.

Fsck subscriptions for music. They need to give us a Netflix-like subscription for movies such as the one Daniel Eran Dilger laid out.

http://www.roughlydrafted.com/2007/12/07/how-apple-could-deliver-workable-itunes-rentals/

A lot of people are already renting music via satellite radio. Subscription iTunes would let you choose the music you like, instead of having someone feed it to you.

Subscriptions SUCK!!!! You keep paying for music you already paid for, over and over again. That's why none of the others worked, people want to own there music and play it anytime they damn well feel like, and not have to check in with the music labels to get there permission. This is exactly what the music labels want everyone to do, pay over and over again for your music which you already have.

It doesn't make sense now, and it doesn't make sense EVER!!!!!

Aug 20, 08 - 09:17 am Comment from: Demon

If Apple Offering a subscription Service will appease the music labels to the point of all the Music tracks in the iTunes store going DRM Free (when purchased), I say let their be a subscription music service with iTunes. While the number of subscribers will be small and will remain small at least it will give the music cartels what they've been dreaming of Subscription Music with iTunes. It also gives Apple the model to show the Movie Studios that a subscription movie rental service is possible too. And Buying customers should be happy too if all the DRM is gone off purchased tracks.
It might end up being a Win Win Win

Steve Jobs said it hiimself, people want to own there music, not rent it. So I believe this so called rumor will not materialize for real.

Well to be fair it sounds like it could be an improvement over your average subscription service by easily allowing you to permanently purchase wherever you see fit.

-- When signed in to subscription account, “Buy” is “Get”

-- “Download and Play throughout iTunes Unlimited Subscription” or “Buy and Keep”

-- “Buy and Keep” option available for downloaded subscription songs, purchased version replaces subscription version

Could that be the revolutionary part of it or are most music subscription services already similar?

Aug 20, 08 - 09:26 am Comment from: Predrag

Seems like someone completely ignored my post. Let me argue again:

If you have a teenage child, you will buy them subscription, instead of having them buy every single Miley Cyrus song. Over the six or seven years before going to college, your teen would have evolved tastes and probably bought several thousand tracks from various artists. These would become embarrassment once they're in college (more importantly, they'd get no iPod play anymore). And you'd be out several thousand $$$. If you had subscription for these seven years, you would have paid less than a thousand.

Subscription model will remain a very small segment of the general market. The point remains valid, though; right now, Apple cannot sell a SINGLE iPod to these people. If they only allowed subscription on iTunes, they could all buy iPods and be very happy.

And the most important thing: it will NOT affect any of you who have no intention of ever in their lives coming anywhere near music subscription.

John, I don't know about you, but I spend well over $129 per year on music and have for more than 30 years. If a subscription service is $129 per year, allows me to get any and all the music I like and I can take it anywhere on my iPod, it seems like a good idea!

Subscriptions have always been a good idea - when supplemented by a viable option to buy tracks and when the price and terms of usage justify the fact that you lose everything when you stop paying. Previous subscription services have tried to position themselves as being a one stop way of listening to and obtaining all your music with the goal of tying you to a service forever. A working subcription service would be to allow you to do your casual listening and try stuff out at a price that you could afford to not end up with anything tangible from.

Steve, say it ain't so!

Aug 20, 08 - 09:41 am Comment from: MrScrith

I'll stay with purchasing my music, thank you very much.

This would be a major competition to satellite radio.

Let's also hope they have a feature like seen on Pandora. Perhaps there is a connection here with the recent Pandora royalty troubles?

Aug 20, 08 - 09:53 am Comment from: ChrisM

Meh, subscription models are the devil. I don't typically spend more than $129 a year on music anyway. I have Pandora and Last.fm for full length previews. The iDisk thing is cool though. Makes sense and makes MobileMe slightly more interesting.

I'll stick with purchasing, too. Along with my vinyl copy of Who's Next, I also got 8-track to play in my 73 Mustang, Cassette to play in my '79 Pacer, CD and now an iTunes version at 128kbs. I can't wait to pay for the 256 version.

Aug 20, 08 - 10:18 am Comment from: Macromancer

"NOW everyone will change their tune and say that subscriptions are cool now that STEVE is doing it.

Hypocrites (I see into future)"

If you can actually COMPREHEND what people have always said, it's that subscriptions ONLY models don't work. There should be an option to buy because people prefer to OWN their music, not rent it perpetually.

No, Predrag, we aren't ignoring you. It's just the basis of your point is something that I suspect most parents here don't agree with.

"If you have a teenage child, you will buy them subscription,..."

No, we won't.

Or, at least this parent won't be flushing an unnecessary $129 down the toilet each year. That's no way to teach a child financial responsibility. My kid can spend his own money, whether for a sub or individual purchases, to support his entertainment habit.

its a rumor.. and a corny one... people wanna own their music

how about subscrption tv shows

I don't want a music subscription, I like owning my music as I listen to it over and over and over.

What I really want for my AppleTV is a monthly rental subscription for unlimited access to older movies like all the other services are offering. And lower the price/increase rental times for HD movies.

As we've often said, Apple should offer an iTunes music subscription option if and when it makes business sense.

I agree, but someone will create automation mp3 software that will exploit the "analog hole" so one can simply play back their subscription music from a iPod back into a Mac/PC.

Tag it and bag it. Steal millions of songs.

Come on, think of the artists. It's only a frigging buck a song. One only needs about 2000 really good songs to have enough variance.

Aug 20, 08 - 10:56 am Comment from: G4Dualie

If subscription models for music actually worked well, then satellite radio would be much more popular than it is.

As it is, Sirius (SIRI-NASDAQ) stock is trading at a buck forty-six a share and the stock has been in long slow decline. XM was subsumed by Sirius proving that competition in that space can't sustain the model. It probably has more to do with their marketing and delivery. I don't know, but satellite radio just sounds complicated. Marketing.

I have access to commercial-free music radio on iTunes but never listen to it. Does anyone else?

If Apple offered subscriptions, I have no doubt they would garner a small percentage of listeners, but that group could never sustain enough profits to support all the Store has to offer.

Aug 20, 08 - 11:31 am Comment from: Mr. Reeee

Wait and see, people.
Wait and see…

@Macaday
Count me out of any subscription service thank you.

A-Men Brutha!

Video will NEVER appear on an iPod! Like Steve said, who wants to watch a tiny video? Er...wrong time period sorry.

Aug 20, 08 - 12:01 pm Comment from: Chris Thacker

"I have access to commercial-free music radio on iTunes but never listen to it. Does anyone else?"

commercial free? nope. KEXP? yep

there are different types of music fans. some people only have a few hundred songs and aren't progressive in their taste. they listen to what the radio plays. a subscription service for these people may not be cost effective versus buying the latest top 40 hit.

other listeners have gigs and gigs of music, are progressive listeners and are very open to new music. these people might benefit more from a subscription service.

just a thought...

Aug 20, 08 - 12:16 pm Comment from: skeeter

@ Macromancer:

Name one subscription service that doesn't give you the option to buy. The model you described - which I think is a fantastic model that's been widely misunderstood and unjustly maligned - is the way ALL subscription services operate, and always have. Sadly, the noise generated in corners such as this one (in which I'm firmly planted, no less) has managed to drown out all the points that make this model make sense.

For everybody STILL whining about wanting to "own" their music and railing against being tied down yada yada yada, here's how it works:
You pay a fee to access everything the store has to offer, listen to whatever you want as much as you want whenever you want, be it on your computer or on your iPod. Pretty cool. On top of that, or instead of that, if you find a song you love enough that you want to OWN it FOREVER, you simply click a button that says BUY, and bam! You own it!

Do you know why all those other subscription services have largely failed? Simply because your iPod don't work with it. Or, you could say, because it ain't Apple.

What Apple needs is a TV Show subscription plan like Netflix. I've stopped buying TV shows from Apple, since i usually only want to watch them once. It's just too expensive.

Every since I got the Netflix ROKU box, I get to use it for free with my Netflix subscription.

"Name one subscription service that doesn't give you the option to buy. The model you described - which I think is a fantastic model that's been widely misunderstood and unjustly maligned - is the way ALL subscription services operate, and always have. Sadly, the noise generated in corners such as this one (in which I'm firmly planted, no less) has managed to drown out all the points that make this model make sense."

Hmm... no.

You may think it's fantastic, but the "fact" that it makes sense does so only to you (and those who agree with you).

Why? Because you (and those who agree) refuse to accept the reality that it makes sense only for you. Music subs are not maligned, nor misunderstood. That's just making excuses for why music subs haven't succeeded.

In regards to listening to music, not everyone's circumstances, situations, musical desires, tastes and wants are the same. If they were, then yeah, what you say might (heavy on the might) make sense.

But the simple fact is, they aren't.

"For everybody STILL whining about wanting to "own" their music and railing against being tied down yada yada yada, here's how it works:
You pay a fee to access everything the store has to offer, listen to whatever you want as much as you want whenever you want, be it on your computer or on your iPod. Pretty cool. On top of that, or instead of that, if you find a song you love enough that you want to OWN it FOREVER, you simply click a button that says BUY, and bam! You own it! "

No one is whining. We know how it works. Most of us just don't think it makes sense to pay for something twice.

The only whining that seems to be going on in regards to music subs is coming from music sub advocates, who appear unable to accept the notion that most people simply aren't interested. They're starting to sound like shills for the music industry.

"Do you know why all those other subscription services have largely failed? Simply because your iPod don't work with it. Or, you could say, because it ain't Apple."

Hmmm... no, again.

They failed (not "largely," but failed period) for one simple reason.

Most people simply aren't interested in music subscriptions.

I personally think subscriptions are dumb but Apple doing a subscription service is a win-win. If it works, they win by suffocating any other potential future competition in this area and if it doesn't work they still own the online digital media market.

Besides, it probably took them, what, two days and five monkeys to program that capability?

Having this option is really a no-brainer for Apple.

I will NEVER EVER pay a monthly fee to listen to music. And I won't ever pay a monthly fee to listen to satellite radio.

This is the wrong way to go (if true).

This is just a Microsoftian like ploy to make Dell give up their plans before they even start.

Well, who said Apple couldn't find a Microsoft tactic it could copy?

I could have sworn the author said this subscription story was a rumor. Why are people going ballistic over this as if it had already happened? The source is an anonymous tipster which means absolutely nothing. Just move on. There is nothing to hear except the dropping of FUD.

Aug 20, 08 - 02:24 pm Comment from: effwerd

Apple: buy Pandora.

Subscription services require stronger DRM than Apple has implemented in iTunes and would represent a major regression in Apples pragmatic stance on DRM.

Aug 20, 08 - 03:31 pm Comment from: shiftOpt k

I always thought subscription services were detested here (seems I've read a many of MDN Takes saying they'd never work, etc)… I know my feelings for them are still as such. NO THANKS on renting my music… I view that same as renting a place to live, a waste of money when you have the option of owning.

That's not to say I can't be convinced otherwise, just until someone can do so, I'll continue detesting subscription services for music (movies are slightly different, since I generally don't watch a movie repeatedly… but I still would prefer to own something I'm paying for).

My 2¢