This new... really weird... thing

[In AmericEar]

Yeah well thats what it is!

You can now download music for free... there's just ONE catch...

It doesn't work on your ipod

iTunes dominates 80% of the music downloads... well, surely that's because that 80% of people want the music to go on their ipod... not just o listen to and then be bombarded with advertisments

So this new thingy-ma-bob, will most probably dominate the 20%... but that'll be it I reckon, because the 80% downloading music to go on their ipod... can't put it in their ipod...

PLUS! Who wants to be bombarded with advertisments... I'd rather pay 79p...



Well i find the whol theory iiiinteresting... veeeeeeery iiiiiiiiinteresting...

*strokes beard*

*shifty eyes*

... Oh yeah... there was a point to this... Ah! What are your views on it?

[Kamui]

Hmmmm theres gotta be something else to that, The Record companies charge stupid amounts for people like Napster and Itunes to put it up for download
also if they make it so it cant be played on an Mp3 player or ipod then it wouldnt be able to be put on a Cd either which would be just plain stupid

[Mithrandir]

Well, I heard about this t'other day, so let me fill in the blanks here...

The company offering the songs for free is SpiralFrog and they have signed a deal with Vivendi (biggest music group on the planet, apparently, although I remember them for being the publisher of Spyro and Crash Bandicoot games) which basically is this (as I believe it): companies will pay to advertise on the website, which will subsidise the cost of buying the music from Vivendi which means the music will be free for the customer.

This means that SpiralFrog and Vivendi get their money, and the customer gets free, legal, music so everyone is a winner. Of course, you will be bombarded with adverts, and if you want the music for your iPod then it won't be too helpful to you. Also, apparently, the music can't be burned to a CD.

What will be interesting will be to see whether companies like Sony and Creative "endorse" SpiralFrog in order to benefit themselves, and to harm Apple.

[In AmericEar]

So why should I download it?

Just to listen to it on the computer??

...While looking at millions of adverts which I get through pop ups?

[Mithrandir]

I don't know, I'm not a salesman. I'm just telling it as it is.

If you use Firefox it'll block out pop-ups; and I'm not entirely sure if when it says "can't put songs on a CD" it means you aren't allowed to or that you are physically inable to.

You have to remember that you will be getting free, legal music.

[In AmericEar]

Yeah but I want free legal music that will go on my ipod! I have a lot of GB to get through

Frankly, I'd rather pay the 79p, 'cos I can still burn that onto a CD aswell...

[Korsrol]

I like the idea of not being able to burn the music to CD (from an artists point of view) but not the pop-ups.

[Mithrandir]

I like the idea of not being able to burn the music to CD (from an artists point of view) but not the pop-ups.

Well, if you use Firefox I think that problem will be solved.

[Theo]

  And what about Opera?  Is the problem solved with Opera, too?

[Mithrandir]

Well as Opera blocks pop-ups (I believe), then there is no issue either. They can't, however, stop adverts on the pages themselves. Also, all browsers might get pop-ups which appear when you click on a link on the site.

The website is scheduled to open in December.

EDIT: I have just found out that the service won't be as great as I thought, the adverts will take an entirely different form...

Wikipedia: Unlike other legal download services, SpiralFrog will be entirely supported by advertising. In order to download a song, the customer must watch a 90-second advertisment, and may then proceed to the download link. It has also been reported that any song downloaded cannot be transfered onto a CD or given to a friend. It has also been reported that you must visit the site once a month to keep your license, though the song will lose its license after 6 months, causing it not to play.

[Theo]

  That sounds really lame..

[Waelith]

I tried this thing called Blubster once. I was able to download stuff onto my Mp3 player, but I got sick of the ads, and as it was a p2p networking programme, I ended up with a whole bunch of viruses that slowed my system right down. I ended up extracting the programme, and all its contents, (and the virus) and my comps been ok since.
I think what i really need to do is get an ipod, so then I can use itunes, as I know thats much more reliable

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