iTunes Music Store, why can't I quit you? Since the beginning, I have had a love-hate relationship with you and your ways. I put up with paying the price you ask in exchange for ease of use and the ability to quickly find and download tracks I want. Your seamless functionality with my iPhone makes me forget that you sometimes only carry partial albums of the electronic music I love so deeply. I tolerate your lower audio quality and DRM in exchange for your music recommendations and guilt-free listening enjoyment knowing that did not jip my favorite artists out of a few bucks.
With all your good qualities like the App Store, movies, and podcasts how can a girl not be satisfied? Well, dear iTMS, let me tell you why you're in the dog house. I paid for a collection of children's music for my son and when I tried to burn a MP3 CD of the songs to play in my car, you denied me. You jumped up and down in the bottom of my screen and alerted me the tracks I purchased from you could not be burned to an MP3 CD. How dare you!
Yes, I know I could burn a bunch of individual audio CDs of the music, but have you ever had to listen to the same 10 children's songs in the car over and over again? It is torture! A second option is to take the time to burn audio CDs and reimport the music as MP3s and then burn them yet again to a single MP3 CD. Exhausting! Furthermore, explain to me why it is easier to illegally download music and burn a MP3 CD in less steps than music I legitimately paid for using your service? Why are you making me jump through hoops? Even if you're business model is to sell iPods and iPhones, I'm curious why your top priority would not be making me and your many other loyal customers happy.
I've given you my support and my hard earned money, but you spit in my face and tell me I cannot do what I want with the music I purchase from you. But alas, I cannot quit you because I am entangled in your evil web of hardware and software that I cannot live without, so for now, our love-hate relationship will go on.
UPDATE: I forgot to mention the children's music was purchased before iTMS went DRM-free, and of course I can update the music in my library at a cost. I checked and DRM-free tunes can be converted to MP3, and I assume they can be burned to MP3 CD. However, I don't feel I should have to pay extra money to convert songs I paid for in the first place.
UPDATE: Poll Results 8/7/09 - 8/14/09
Do you love or hate the iTunes Music Store?
50% Love it!
25% Hate it!
25% It's ok.
00% I've had better.
Friday, August 7, 2009
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Interesting. That's a new DRM feature I wasn't aware of. And, correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought they had converted the entire library to DRM-free(ish) iTunes Plus a few months back. Very interesting.
ReplyDeleteI like the iTMS for ease of use and vast search abilities, but I ALWAYS check Amazon MP3 before I make a purchase because it is usually a few dollars cheeper over there -- not always, but usually. Amazon MP3 has done a nice job of integrating itself with iTunes as well, that the whole transition is basically seemless.
The children's music was tracks I purchased prior to the DRM-free switch, and I would have to pay even more money to update all the songs in my library. I checked and music purchased since then that is DRM free can be converted to MP3 and burned to MP3 CD. Darn iTMS always has its hand in my pocket book. LOL
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