Steve Jobs and Apple announced on Tuesday that the Beatles would finally appear on iTunes. Terms of the deal between Apple and the record lable EMI Group, Ltd. have still not been released, but the talks have happened. Apple now has the right to digitalize the Fab Four and sell their music online.
The Beatles' entrance into the realm of iTunes could be "Hello" for some and "Goodbye" for others in the industry of music retail. For one, it completely solidifies the prominence of online music. The fact that the Beatles had been missing from iTunes before meant that there was a great gap in the digital music system. Now that iTunes has said "goodbye" to that gap, it can really start to take a hold of the music business.
Over the past few years, online music selling has very quickly become the primary form of music retail, and the fact that that retail now includes the Beatles only makes the online market stronger. It may even represent a step in the direction toward the death of the CD, and, therefore, physical music retail stores. As more and more artists finally go digital, there are fewer and fewer reasons to go out and buy CDs. Any retailers that sell CDs, from Best Buy to small record stores, will suffer from this digitalization.
This transition could also mean big things for Apple in general. The Beatles are an older group and draw from an older population of fans. The fact that they are now available online may encourage those of an older generation to jump on the iPod bandwagon. Incorporating such a groundbreaking band will open awareness and spread Apple products across more generations.
Apple is likely to see a large boom in sales when the Beatles finally go on the market. Everyone has been waiting for this for a long time and they will be eager to begin buying every song imaginable. There will suddenly be so many popular songs available at once, and sales will rise accordingly. Some may even buy their first iPods because of the fact that the Beatles are now available.
As for music retail, the online trend is becoming more and more common, and it is becoming more and more difficult for anyone to compete with Apple in that category.
Sources: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703326204575617004052395816.html
http://www.appolicious.com/finance/articles/3991-with-the-beatles-now-on-itunes-the-album-format-is-no-longer-yesterday
Catherine Reeves
I think that having the Beatles on Itunes may not make that big of a difference. Many people either already have the Beatles music because they are a classic or will choose to illegally download it. I think this could be interesting to watch.
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