After being the last major label to drop DRM, announces plan to sell physical digital album cards for around $13 dollars that enable consumers to download full-length DRM-free albums online.
In an unusual twist in the record industry’s battle for relevancy in an increasing digital marketplace, Sony BMG has announced that it will launch a new online music download service called Platinum MusicPass. The service is essentially centered around gift cards, or digital album cards as a press release refers to them as, that one purchases at participating retailers and then redeems online to download a chosen album.
“We’re happy to be participating in the launch of a new physical format of digital music for retail,” commented Jennifer Johnston Schaidler, Vice President, Music, Best Buy. “Physical products like this will be another way for Best Buy to deliver music and entertainment to our customers in a manner that suits their needs whether it is an impulse purchase, gift, or great collectible. Digital music doesn’t need to be restricted to online environments. We look forward to learning how physical products can help grow the digital marketplace.”
In the United States, MusicPass cards will be available at Best Buy, Target, and Fred’s on January 15th, with Trans World stores (Coconuts, FYE, Wherehouse, & Spec’s) and Winn-Dixie rolling out the cards by the end of January.
In Canada, participating retailers include Best Buy, CD Plus, Future Shop, Shoppers Drug Mart and Wal-Mart. In addition, HMV will launch MusicPass in Canada during the first calendar quarter of 2008.
“The introduction of MusicPass is an important part of SONY BMG’s ongoing campaign to bring its artists’ music to fans in new and innovative ways, and to develop compelling new business models,” commented Thomas Hesse, President, Global Digital Business & U.S. Sales, SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT. “The MP3 files delivered through MusicPass play on computers, as well as on all MP3 players, including iPods. This makes them a simple, easy to use solution that will appeal to fans who already access their music on the Internet, as well as to consumers who are just getting into the digital realm. The cards themselves are high-quality collectibles featuring artist images and album information.”
The cards will have a suggested retail price of $12.99 which will include the complete digital album plus bonus material or, in the case of compilations, extensive track listings. In order get the content from their MusicPass cards consumers scratch the back of their card to unveil their pin number. They then visit MusicPass.com to download their music files and bonus material.
Two of the albums included in the initial offering, Celine Dion’s Taking Chances and Kenny Chesney’s Just Who I Am: Poets & Pirates, will be made available both as regularly priced Platinum MusicPass Cards, and in “special” $19.99 versions through which consumers will receive the complete album and bonus material, plus the choice of one additional album from that same artist.
Sony BMG was the last of the top four music labels to drop DRM, following Warner Music Group, which in late December said it would sell DRM-free songs through Amazon.com’s digital music store. EMI and Vivendi’s Universal Music Group announced their plans for DRM-free downloads earlier in 2007. Platinum MusicPass is apparently part of a new plan to experiment with different economic and music delivery models.
But, why is the suggested retail price for an album download $12.99 when Sony BMG incurs little overhead like packaging, distribution, etc.? Isn’t that the same price that Wal-Mart and other “low price leader” retailers charge for popular albums? Why not just buy the album, rip it yourself, and then have both without having to hassle with downloading anything?
Clearly Sony BMG hasn’t thought this through. A collectible gift card and overpriced album – DRM-free or not – is the best plan for competing with Apple’s iTunes and piracy that it could come up with?
“Platinum MusicPass” sounds like more of the same nonsense to me – too much money for too little of a product.
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If you want them to buy E-Music at Best Buy here’s a hint lock in a deal for cheaper music and have 3 terminals set up to be the only ones to receive that deal pretty simple eh? Just E-Mail it to yourself or purchase a usable memory unit if you don’t have one Deep Freeze or a similar software to lock out any changes and set up a 15 minute time limit per guest login to purchase your songs.
Have a hard copy of the music catalog before they even touch the terminal so that they can find their music before they dive headlong into their 15 minutes.
The last thing I’d want is to be throwing around plastic chunks that denote a single album’s worth of muzak you never know what the hooligans’ll do with those things once they got their tunes (I’ve done some pretty nasty things with a pre-paid phone card that I found laying around
)
Although 13 bucks isn’t that bad of a price considering it’s Sony doing the deal makes you wonder how much they’re undercutting the poor sap who’s making the jingle?
if you cant beat us ‘join us’? they trying but that wont be as popular as freaking limewire.
ps:nothing beats torrents:..::.usene::ehem::… might though.