[ctdonath2]

Oops, forgot to divide by 8 (bits vs. bytes).

That’s 33GB of content at 256kbps compressing a modest collection of 12 CDs per year for 30 years. A common collection will be several times larger.

[kevkrom]

That’s 33GB of content at 256kbps compressing a modest collection of 12 CDs per year for 30 years. A common collection will be several times larger.

Note that a single audiobook can run 10-20 CDs in length, too. With only a small collection of audiobooks, I have something like 200 CDs worth of books in my library.

[antiRepublicrat]

360 CDs? I’m not a music fanatic, but I’ve been collecting CDs for about 23 years, and I’m over 1,000. That’s about a four per month average, including digging through bargain bins and hitting second-hand shops. Many of my friends have far more, and I’m not talking about the ones who DJ on weekends.

[ReignOfError]

That’s 33GB of content at 256kbps compressing a modest collection of 12 CDs per year for 30 years. A common collection will be several times larger.

I'm sure there are lawyers at Apple negotiating with the movie studios as we speak. That's where the space really gets huge, and where Apple's "store an alias to a common file" approach really pays off. I have little doubt movies will show up eventually, but it will almost certainly be iTunes purchases only.