NBC: 'Apple's got it wrong'
September 1st 2007
Bloomberg has published NBC' response to Apple's decision to dump the broadcaster from the iTunes Store. As one might expect, they deny any ill will or, for that matter, any intention to effectively double their prices.
• We never asked to double the wholesale price for our TV shows
• It is clear that Apple's retail pricing strategy for its iTunes service is designed to drive sales of Apple devices
• [W]e asked Apple to take concrete steps to protect content from piracy, since it is estimated that the typical iPod contains a significant amount of illegally downloaded material
Given that Apple's the only company selling digital content with any success, it's more than a bit disingenuous for NBC or Universal to claim the mothership benefits disproportionately from iTunes. Quite the contrary, content owners earn more per unit sold via iTunes than they do through traditional sales channels.
Lastly, it's worth noting that NBC doesn't deny that end-user prices would have doubled if Apple had caved to them...
What's your take?
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