Universal Music is now lowering the wholesale cost on various catalog albums, according to information received Monday. The company pointed to an “aggressive European strategy” that will “permanently reduce the digital download prices” of about 1,500 catalog albums. Included in the cut-rate batch are Buddy Holly, Dusty Springfield, Bob Marley and the Wailers, and The Who. The campaign gets started on November 1st, the beginning of a 12-month rollout. “As the leading online record company, we are totally committed to expanding and developing the digital music market,” said Max Hole, executive vice president of Marketing & A&R at Universal Music Group International.
The move is part of a continued push towards variable digital download pricing, though singles are not part of the latest initiative. The reason is that Apple has remained inflexible on its uniform a-la-carte pricing approach, though the company is less rigid when it comes to albums. Meanwhile, it remains unclear exactly how digital music stores will react to the change, though Universal indicated that early response has been positive.
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