42244 1 3 econsultancy_xml <p>Unlike Apple's iTunes, Amazon's customers will not be locked into any one digital player, and will also be able to burn their own CDs. </p> <p>In the US, songs will be priced at between $0.89 and $0.99, with more than half available at the lower price, thus undercutting iTunes by $0.10. Albums will be priced from $5.99 to $9.99. </p> <p>It has a good range of music, especially from Universal and EMI, though there is nothing on there from Sony as yet. </p> <p>It will be interesting to see what Amazon will charge customers in the UK, who are currently <a href="/blog/1696-hey-nbc-apple-already-does-variable-pricing">paying about 60% more for downloading songs on iTunes</a> then US customers, for no apparent reason.  </p> <p>Apple's iTunes store currently has around 80% of the music download market - it is unlikely that Amazon will be an iTunes killer but, with DRM-free downloads and cheaper pricing, it should prove to be a serious competitor for Apple. </p> <p> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/b/ref=sd_allcat_dmusic/103-1224986-8593457?ie=UTF8&amp;node=163856011">Amazon MP3</a> is currently available in the US only, though the UK version will be rolled out later this year.  </p> <p> <strong>Related stories:</strong> <br /> <a href="/blog/1708-nbc-jumps-into-bed-with-amazon-after-apple-split">NBC jumps into bed with Amazon after Apple split</a>  </p> <FormattedContent xmlns="http://www.e-consultancy.com/schema/formattedContent/"> <Paragraph>Unlike Apple's iTunes, Amazon's customers will not be locked into any one digital player, and will also be able to burn their own CDs. </Paragraph> <Paragraph>In the US, songs will be priced at between $0.89 and $0.99, with more than half available at the lower price, thus undercutting iTunes by $0.10. Albums will be priced from $5.99 to $9.99. </Paragraph> <Paragraph>It has a good range of music, especially from Universal and EMI, though there is nothing on there from Sony as yet. </Paragraph> <Paragraph>It will be interesting to see what Amazon will charge customers in the UK, who are currently <Link URL="/blog/1696-hey-nbc-apple-already-does-variable-pricing" Window="Self">paying about 60% more for downloading songs on iTunes</Link> then US customers, for no apparent reason.  </Paragraph> <Paragraph>Apple's iTunes store currently has around 80% of the music download market - it is unlikely that Amazon will be an iTunes killer but, with DRM-free downloads and cheaper pricing, it should prove to be a serious competitor for Apple. </Paragraph> <Paragraph> <Link URL="http://www.amazon.com/b/ref=sd_allcat_dmusic/103-1224986-8593457?ie=UTF8&amp;node=163856011" Window="Self">Amazon MP3</Link> is currently available in the US only, though the UK version will be rolled out later this year.  </Paragraph> <Paragraph> <Emphasis>Related stories:</Emphasis> <LineBreak /> <Link URL="/blog/1708-nbc-jumps-into-bed-with-amazon-after-apple-split" Window="Self">NBC jumps into bed with Amazon after Apple split</Link>  </Paragraph> </FormattedContent> 2007-09-25T12:05:00+01:00 1 1 econsultancy_xml <p> <strong>Amazon has launched a beta version of its much-anticipated DRM-free music download store. </strong> </p> <p>The etailing giant claims it will have the world's largest collection of DRM-free music downloads, with 2m songs available from over 180,000 artists.</p> <p>However, it is not yet available in the UK.</p> <FormattedContent xmlns="http://www.e-consultancy.com/schema/formattedContent/"> <Paragraph> <Emphasis>Amazon has launched a beta version of its much-anticipated DRM-free music download store. </Emphasis> </Paragraph> <Paragraph>The etailing giant claims it will have the world's largest collection of DRM-free music downloads, with 2m songs available from over 180,000 artists.</Paragraph> <Paragraph>However, it is not yet available in the UK.</Paragraph> </FormattedContent> false 1780 <p>Related Econsultancy reports include our <strong><a href="http://econsultancy.com/reports/e-commerce-platforms-buyer-s-guide-2009">E-commerce Platforms Buyer's Guide</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://econsultancy.com/reports/delivering-successful-e-commerce-projects">Delivering Successful E-commerce Projects</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://econsultancy.com/reports/online-retail-2007-checkout-special">Online Retail Checkout Special</a></strong>. See also the <strong><a href="http://econsultancy.com/reports/e-commerce-statistics">E-commerce Statistics Compendium</a></strong>.</p> <p>Related Econsultancy reports include our <strong><a href="http://econsultancy.com/reports/e-commerce-platforms-buyer-s-guide-2009">E-commerce Platforms Buyer's Guide</a></strong>, <strong><a href="http://econsultancy.com/reports/delivering-successful-e-commerce-projects">Delivering Successful E-commerce Projects</a></strong> and <strong><a href="http://econsultancy.com/reports/online-retail-2007-checkout-special">Online Retail Checkout Special</a></strong>. See also the <strong><a href="http://econsultancy.com/reports/e-commerce-statistics">E-commerce Statistics Compendium</a></strong>.</p> 364291 Amazon launches music download site in beta false 2007-09-26T08:18:00+01:00 amazon-launches-music-download-site-in-beta 2009-04-28T22:58:46+01:00 2009-10-13T09:20:19+01:00 452