Sony’s new MyPlay store is live, and they’re hoping they can claw back some of their sales margin from iTunes, currently the biggest outlet online. Doubtless this will have some effect, especially if they plug it into the Play Station Network, but I don’t think they’ll really be able to take much market share away from iTunes, eMusic or the other established download stores, as their catalogue won’t be comprehensive. Unless they sign deals with the other majors to sell their content too, which seems unlikely to happen – why would EMI want to give Sony an advantage? – then the twin pitfalls of limited catalogue and people’s unwillingness to open and run multiple credit-card accounts will hinder their progress. Unless they gouge their competition heavily on the pricing of their own product, they’ll remain a minority player in the download market.
Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) filed it’s latest 10K with the SEC last week (if you click that link, put the kettle on and make yourself a cup of tea before the file opens, you’re in for a long read, tl;dr Page 42 for a summary) and their figures are still awe-inspiring: more than 54 million iPods sold this year, which is actually a drop of 500,000 on last year, probably caused by people choosing to buy an iPhone instead, seeing as Apple sold over 20 million of them! (Something I was surprised PaidContent’s little precis of the report failed to take into account). This is good news for RouteNote’s uploaders, as it means more potential iTunes customers, and the direct growth of iTunes’ sales is even better news; up 20% year on year, even more reason to get your music on iTunes with RouteNote.
The Ocarina from Smule synthesizes sound in real-time based on your “wind input” (fancy talk for you blow on it), tilt, and finger placement over four graphic “holes” overlaid on the multi-touch pad. Unlike some iPhone audio apps, the sound is not pre-compiled but is generated by the individual performer. As a result, “it allows an iPhone user to explore and master the musical sounds of an entirely iPhone-native version of an ancient flute-like instrument.” Its available for $.99 at Apple’s AppStore. Here’s a demo and be sure to check out “Starway To Heaven” after the jump. You can purchase the Ocarina Application on iTunes here.
Sony’s new MyPlay store is live, and they’re hoping they can claw back some of their sales margin from iTunes, currently the biggest outlet online. Doubtless this will have some effect, especially if they plug it into the Play Station Network, but I don’t think they’ll really be able to take much market share away from iTunes, eMusic or the other established download stores, as their catalogue won’t be comprehensive. Unless they sign deals with the other majors to sell their content too, which seems unlikely to happen – why would EMI want to give Sony an advantage? – then the twin pitfalls of limited catalogue and people’s unwillingness to open and run multiple credit-card accounts will hinder their progress. Unless they gouge their competition heavily on the pricing of their own product, they’ll remain a minority player in the download market.
Apple (
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