Posted on 05/10/2006 6:39:54 PM PDT by Panerai
Sony is moving to make its music management software compatible with Apple Computer's audio file format in the latest evidence of Apple's dominance in digital music.
The behemoth Japanese conglomerate, which once controlled the portable music market, announced Tuesday that the company's data compression technology would be compatible with a number of rival formats, including Apple's format of choice, AAC.
In the past, Sony has fiercely held to its own Atrac system. By switching to a technology that supports AAC, Sony appears to be acknowledging Apple's dominance in the digital music playing market, say analysts.
"That's a big change for Sony," said Shaw Wu, an analyst with American Technology Research. "But it's not surprising. Competitors keep trying to stop Apple, but the company's market share just continues to grow."
Calls to Sony were not returned Wednesday.
Sony's new management system will allow iPod users to swap some of their music to a Sony Walkman, but only songs they ripped from CDs.
Music downloaded from Apple's iTunes music store is prevented from playing on non-Apple devices by Apple's digital rights management technology.
Obvious choice. 80% of the market.
LOL! what a ripoff.
Music downloaded from Sony's music store is in ATRAC format and are prevented from playing on non-Sony devices by Sony's digital rights management technology. It's also far more draconian in terms of what you can do with your music, with regards to burning CDs and converting to MP3.
LOL! what a ripoff.
(Yes, the above is true. IIRC, the Sony music store also costs more than Apple's. And looks like your dream of Sony coming up with an iTunes competitor just got flushed - Sony's only been trying since about six months after iTMS came online, and they're giving up. If *SONY* can't do it, nobody else is going to.)
Sony, will just make an exact copy of iTunes. Same format and everything but make it able to play on every device. Then Apple will die. :)
No, they won't. Licensing AAC means that you specifically can't make a copy of iTMS. And AAC will only play on licensed devices, if it's got the DRM on it. And iTMS's look and feel is patented, so no go there. Sony was the only other company with the tight control over the software and hardware that could have pulled it off, and now they can't.
oh Apple has a monopoly... maybe i should sue them?
Sony will just take over Apple and dissolve it. :)
Apple doesn't have a monopoly as long as there are other portable digital music players out there.
Apple has a monopoly on digital music players the way Honda has a monopoly on motorcycles - they don't have a monopoly, but they own 75% or more of the market.
Sony's in financial trouble right now - rapidly declining sales, and they've missed the boat on the last two great electronics revolutions.
If anything, it might go the other way around, with Sony just closing their music store and bundling iTMS.
If someone can not create a itunes alternative then its a monopoly. I still think Sony should buy them out! that would be hilarious to the Religion of Mac! LOL
OK, even better have Microsoft buy Apple! LOL! Watch the Mac Faithful die! LOL
There are *many* iTMS alternatives. None of them have succeeded in the market, for various reasons - most of which involve draconian DRM, incomprehensible user interfaces, or just consumer-hostile practices.
There are a number of software alternatives to iTunes for loading music on your iPod. Those haven't gone anywhere either, and they're *free*!!!
And before you spout off about "proprietary format", the iPod is still capable of playing standard MP3s. You don't have to have AAC or buy your music from iTMS to load it on your iPod. Hell, you don't have to have ANY of the Apple software installed to load MP3's on your iPod if you don't want.
It's not a monopoly, especially when you contrast it to, oh, Sony's ATRAC format? It's only within the last year that Sony's digital music players have been able to play *some* MP3s, the rest of the time, you had to use ATRAC. And most of them you *had* to load the Sony software on your computer to put music on the device. If you tried to create an alternative software, Sony would (and did!) sue you as ATRAC was patented.
You're a "don't confuse me with facts" guy, aren't you?
Microsoft won't buy Apple. In fact, if Apple ever gets in financial trouble, Microsoft will bail them out. Why? Because without Apple, Microsoft IS, for all practical purposes, a monopoly.
They did that in 1998, too.
So, sorry to shatter yet another one of your dreams, but that's not going to happen either.
Which actually shows that Apple's DRM is the least restrictive and easiest to remove.
Now, show me a page that shows you how to remove DRM from ATRAC. Or from WMP.
Its still illegal.
MS would not be a monopoly if Apple folded. Other OS's are available, Linspire etc.
You do know that iTunes lets you rip or convert to MP3, right?
yes, if you want to lose quality.
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