AnywhereCD 30 Cent MP3s
This article is part of a series reviewing the AnywhereCD bundled CD+MP3 album store.
1. Anywhere(CD) But Here (Warner Music).
3. Anywhere(CD) is Better Than Nowhere.
4. AnywhereCD 30 Cent MP3s
The subversive angle on AnywhereCD is that it prices digital singles at 30 cents. How so? Consider a typical CD that retails online for $12. AnywhereCD sells the CD plus all the digital cuts for $15. So the digital files are $3 extra. Assume 10 tracks per CD. That results in 30 teeny cents per tune. Note that this isn't for crippled DRM files that normally sell for $1, but open format MP3s for which iTunes charges $1.30. Or that AnywhereCD's sister MP3tunes sells for 88 cents.
Now I grant that this isn't an exact comparison. Consumers can't directly buy individual 30 cent MP3s. They have to buy the CD. But this is what they will see and take away from AnywhereCD. The bundle is a packaging vehicle only.
30 cents for a single is not a bad price. A few studies have shown that many consumers value a digital single in this range.
To a tiny part of the consumer market, the impulse buyers and superfans, this digital pricing will be perceived as fair. If you buy the CD and want the entire album in digital form, getting the singles for 30 cents each is reasonable. There is no incentive to obtain the digital files illegally. It's cheap enough that if you don't like half the singles from the album you can delete them without thinking you got ripped off.
But this 30 cent offer does not apply to most consumers. Digital music is social and fungible. There are many ways to obtain MP3 files, which will continue to be used. People trade files on P2P and IM networks, send them via email, download libraries from other iPods, and now they can copy them from friends who are AnywhereCD or iTunes Premium buyers. Technology continues to chip away at the artificial price of music. Give this group the opportunity to buy singles for 30 cents and a huge dent could be made in non-purchased music.
BurnLounge now offers FREE online music stores. Should be a PR by corporate next week.
Users can now open a free music store online and earn points for selling music. Throughout America and the world, there will be an opportunity to have artists and their music fans operating their own online music stores – FREE. Users can even redeem points for cash if they upgrade to a paid membership.
We expect exponential growth in the next few months. 60,000 paid accounts to over 1 million FREE online music accounts should be obtainable within months!
htttp://www.kurtsmusic.com