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NBC abandons iTunes?

31 August 2007 5:07 by James "Dela" Delahunty | 10 comments

According to the online edition of the New York Times, NBC Universal has declined to renew its contract with Apple Inc.'s iTunes download store. The paper cites a source close to the situation which put the blame on failure to agree on pricing schemes. NBC is the No.1 supplier to the iTunes store and apparently accounts for about 40% of the overall video downloads.

The company notified Apple of its decision late Thursday according to the source. A spokesman for NBC confirmed the decision had been made to the Times but declined to comment any further and spokespeople at Apple have not made any comments yet. There is growing tension between Apple and content providers over the pricing scheme on the iTunes download store.

Apple believes that easy pricing schemes such as "99c per track" or "$1.99 per video" are attractive in the developing market for audio and video downloads. Music labels, and now it would appear video content providers, would prefer a more variable pricing scheme that allowed them some freedom over the price of individual content. Universal Music Group recently declined to sign another long-term deal with iTunes.

Source:
Reuters

Permalink to this article

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Discuss this article!
spivey8 (Newbie) 31 August 2007 6:47
oop's guess that sucks for the ipod lovers :) [ + quote]
webe123 (Inactive) 31 August 2007 7:14
There is only about a MILLION other ways to get the file....for FREE! [ + quote]
Pride1 (Member) 31 August 2007 7:37
If it were up to the content providers it would be $5 or more a pop, 99c per track and $1.99 per video seems very good [ + quote]
MightyOne (Junior Member) 31 August 2007 7:40
It doesn't sound like Apple is being unreasonable.... if i'm not mistaken, i think the article above is basically saying NBC and Universal Music Group thinks its too low, and wants to charge more. I could be wrong. It doesn't specify does it ? Is it a problem that Apple is dictating the price. Doesn't really say who is the greediest of the bunch here. I don't think apples prices are too bad...or is that me ? [ + quote]
emugamer (Junior Member) 31 August 2007 8:25
*Originally posted by MightyOne:* It doesn't sound like Apple is being unreasonable.... if i'm not mistaken, i think the article above is basically saying NBC and Universal Music Group thinks its too low, and wants to charge more. I could be wrong. It doesn't specify does it ? Is it a problem that Apple is dictating the price. Doesn't really say who is the greediest of the bunch here. I don't think apples prices are too bad...or is that me ? Apple claims to have a handle on the pricing schemes. They feel that a consumer is more likely to purchase a song or video if they are all priced the same. I agree with Apple. The reason why I agree is because that appeals to me. I don't want one show to be more expensice than another. It's lame and I would rather use the "MILLIONS" of other ways to get the video free and perform whatever conversion I need to. It seems like the music labels and content providers are the greedy ones here. But is that any surprise? That doesn't mean Apple isn't greedy though....they want to gain our trust. The content providers don't care if we trust them or not - They just want our money :-P Now if the content providers were smart, they would go along with Apple and wait for the online audio and video markets to evolve. Then work their way up over the next few years. Start "low" now, and then gradually increase the price when digital downloads are a part of the norm for most American househlds. Wait until digital media fully permeates every aspect of our lives. Then start with a new pricing scheme. Wait until we need it to the point where we'll pay the extra $2.00 an episode. Might take a few years or more...but no...they want it all now. [ + quote] This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 31 August 2007 8:31
Londor (Inactive) 31 August 2007 10:32
NBC wanted to increase more than double the wholesale price per episode which would force Apple to sell each episode at $4.99. Apple said bye-bye NBC. [ + quote] This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 31 August 2007 10:36
SProdigy (Member) 31 August 2007 13:41
*Originally posted by Londor:* NBC wanted to increase more than double the wholesale price per episode which would force Apple to sell each episode at $4.99. Apple said bye-bye NBC. So, $4.99 to purchase something that you could normally watch for free? And then they wonder why people turn to the "millions of 'free' alternatives..." [ + quote]
sk8flawzz (Member) 31 August 2007 14:29
i love apple guess its to the torrents for heroes seasons 2..hehe [ + quote]
Unfocused (Junior Member) 31 August 2007 15:24
NBC is turning their back on loyal customers and screwing them in the process. You already have people willing to pay $1.99 for a clip. How are you going to more than double the price and expect them to continue paying. [ + quote]
borhan9 (AfterDawn Addict) 9 September 2007 23:38
ohh well big deal. [ + quote]