Tip #3140 - Online Music Update
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Online
Music Update
Music lovers and computer
aficionados alike, have become savvy researchers of the online music scene.
They try to feed their lyrical fix with free downloads or subscription
download services. However, these fans (including myself) often gripe
that with subscription services, they are facing the same problem as they
do in music stores. They feel that even with the brief previews provided
at certain retailers, like Barnes and Noble and on online music Web sites,
they aren’t able to learn more about a new artist’s sound.
So, this is when we bring in online music. The following run down of online
music services will show even the most discerning online music fan that
there actually still is some hope.
In my mind, the best
new music provider on the Internet is eMusic, which can be found at www.emusic.com.
This great Web site has been marketed to college students, readers of
magazines like Rolling Stone and others who most commonly go
to the online music well. This marketing campaign has included ubiquitous
black and red cards that allow new subscribers to get 50 free downloads
to their MP3 players and iPods. For those who haven’t come across
these cards, don’t fret, because eMusic has a standard new subscriber
bonus of 25 free downloads. Once you get past the free downloads, however,
the fun doesn’t stop. With just under two million songs available
for download, eMusic is competitive with other online music services.
Subscriptions start at $9.99 per month for 40 downloads and go up to $19.99
for 90 downloads, which allows music lovers to download between four and
nine full CDs worth of material for a fraction of the retail costs.
Napster, found at
www.napster.com, is the center of
the peer-to-peer music firestorm of a few years back. It has become a
legitimate subscription music service along the way. Napster’s attempts
to reach out to music lovers who want to sample new music or classics
by their favorite artists can listen to every one of the Web site’s
two million songs three times before subscribing. I listened to the entire
new album by The Who on Napster, which convinced me to purchase
it on CD. As well, Napster offers a seven day free trial run of their
software, complete with downloads to a variety of MP3 players. For $14.99
per month, Napster offers unlimited downloads to consumers who want access
to as much music as they can download. Napster does not allow downloads
to iPods, but MP3 players by Creative, Dell, Gateway and others, are compatible
with Napster’s software.
A competitor to Napster’s
extensive free music offering is Rhapsody, located at www.rhapsody.com.
Rhapsody allows visitors to listen to 25 music channels of their favorite
music without having to pay a dime. While this free service is entirely
computer based and not downloadable to MP3 players, it is great for those
who work at their computer and want to listen to free music of their choosing.
However, Rhapsody offers two different subscription services for those
who want more out of their online music service. With the Rhapsody Unlimited
Account, at $9.99 a month, it offers access to millions of songs on demand,
for those who know what band or genre they are interested in listening
to. As well, with the Unlimited Account comes a discount on individual
MP3 downloads, starting at $0.89. The premium account at Rhapsody is the
Rhapsody To Go service, available for $14.99. With Rhapsody To Go, subscribers
can drag tracks of their favorite music from the site onto their MP3 player
and get the benefits of both the free and the Unlimited Account.
The subscription services
all have their benefits, but if you are anything like me, you still want
to have access to free music and independent sounds. Not to mention, having
a few different sites in your music repertoire is not a bad idea. The
Web site of MP3.com, available at www.mp3.com,
offers one source of free downloads of independent music. Like Amazon’s
free download service, MP3.com features a wide variety of little known
artists who are hoping to get exposure to new listeners through free downloads.
As well, MP3.com features news and features on the music industry, a clearinghouse
of information on MP3 players and access to limited free downloads by
artists who have been around for awhile, like U2 and Eminem.
While many people
choose one subscription service over another and stay loyal to it, I would
encourage people to take advantage of the free services through all four
of these Web sites. Most require a simple registration to access free
services and the rewards are great, considering the mounting cost of downloads
and CDs. Don’t be afraid to try all of these music services at one
point or another so you can gain better insight into the online music
market. Finally, remember to enjoy yourself, because that is why we listen
to music in the first place!
~ Nick Katers
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