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iTunes song for sale at eBay

3 September 2003 12:52 by Jari Ketola | 13 comments

A man called George Hotelling has posted an eBay auction for a song he bought from Apple's iTunes music store. He's trying to find out whether or not he has the right of first sale to the song.

"I only spent $0.99 on it but I bought the song just as legally as I would a CD, so I should be able to sell it used just as legally right?" he writes. The highest bid for the song is, as of writing, at $350.

The question rised by mr. Hotelling is definitely a valid one. When you buy a CD and then sell it, you're not really selling the physical medium, but the immaterial contents of the disc. The same rules should apply to purchased downloads. According to Hotelling the iTunes service agreements in no way deny transferability.

Update 9/4/2003 15:45:
eBay has removed the item for violating our [eBay's] Downloadable Media Policy.

Please visit Hotelling's page for more information.

Source:
Slashdot.org
George Hotelling

Permalink to this article

PassAlong and eBay to enter music download market (23 September 2004)

MSN music downloading service to launch this week (30 August 2004)

iTunes for Windows launched (16 October 2003)

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Discuss this article!
sly_61019 (AfterDawn Addict) 3 September 2003 12:59
who the hell is bidding $350 for a $.99 song!! V4 PS2, flip top, SMD, CDLoader Pioneer 105, Memorex 4X DVD-R DVD Shrink, DVD Decrypter, Nero [ + quote]
Amakuza_8 (Inactive) 3 September 2003 13:09
whoever is bidding for $350 is stupid moron.No one trust ebay, there are bunch of BS!!! [ + quote]
loxley32 (Junior Member) 3 September 2003 13:50
hi .. the money is not the point, please do not miss the point being made here. Our government and our laws are ALWAYS trying to tell us what to do with OUR stuff. George is making a statement. The same statement I amde when Metalica sued Napster. I got the bands email address and emailed the link to the auction on Ebay where I was selling all of their cds that I had. [ + quote]
GrayArea (Member) 3 September 2003 14:44
loxley32 is correct in my view. It's not E-bait, it's not the price, it's our rights as consumers. They (our rights) are ON THE LINE as you know them. With DMCA, DRM, RIAA thug tactics, "trusted" computers, and the rest of the EVIL S#IT big brother is (fairly successfully) stuffing down our collective throat you'll be paying every time you see/hear a tune, movie, or whatever else they can call "media". Hopefully I'm just some paranoid nutbag. I might be, but I don't think I'm wrong about what the media companys really want. We mustn't lower ourselves to the level of those we loathe, lest we become loathsome ourselves. [ + quote]
sly_61019 (AfterDawn Addict) 3 September 2003 14:47
NO, i do understand the point he is making, but he can also make that person pay him $350 for bidding on the auction. V4 PS2, flip top, SMD, CDLoader Pioneer 105, Memorex 4X DVD-R DVD Shrink, DVD Decrypter, Nero [ + quote]
Labrat (Member) 3 September 2003 15:53
Nah, he won't he may just get a negative feedback at the most. Despite All My Rage - I'm Still Just A Rat In A Cage! [ + quote]
Ghostdog (Senior Member) 4 September 2003 4:25
It will be interesting to see if the RIAA or any other authority reacts to this one. In theory, they shouldn�t have anything to say about this. [ + quote]
Ghostdog (Senior Member) 4 September 2003 4:27
Jesus, 2550 bucks for one song. And they say CDs are overpriced. [ + quote]
bosch00 (Newbie) 4 September 2003 6:16
ok the bid is now at $16,600, come on who is really gonna pay that? [ + quote]
GrayArea (Member) 4 September 2003 9:35
It's not just a song file anymore. It has become an historical document. The bat Babe Ruth hit his last home run with is just a bat. How much do you think it would sell for at auction today? How this event is resolved will have a HUGE impact on the future of itellectual property rights for digital media. IT'S NOT THE PRICE OF THE AUCTION. Do not be blinded by a few thousand dollars. MILLIONS, perhaps even BILLIONS of dollars are at stake here in the form of who "owns" and can sell/resell digital media in the future. Nevermind. Oh wow, the bid is up to blah blah dollars! We mustn't lower ourselves to the level of those we loathe, lest we become loathsome ourselves. [ + quote]
Ketola (Admin) 4 September 2003 11:06
Just to add another point to the discussion, Mr. Hotelling has agreed to refund the winning bid (if even paid in the first place), if the song is not playable on the receiving computer. Which it most likely isn't. But like loxley and GrayArea said, it's not about the price. A high bid might lead to visibility in "major" media, such as newspapers and TV news. That's the best way of getting attention to the matter no-one has discussed so far. Jari Ketola Administrator http://www.AfterDawn.com [ + quote]
sly_61019 (AfterDawn Addict) 4 September 2003 11:28
Invalid item?? V4 PS2, flip top, SMD, CDLoader Pioneer 105, Memorex 4X DVD-R DVD Shrink, DVD Decrypter, Nero [ + quote]
mac71 (Member) 4 September 2003 11:38
Ebay has removed the item from auctions. So it must have gotten someones attention. Want to test a Mans character? Give him Power! [ + quote]