Amazon Music Downloads Are Cheaper Than iTunes 78% Of The Time, But Apple Still Dominates
Tracks on Amazon are cheaper than on Apple's iTunes 78% of the time according to a new study; and albums can be as much as 50% cheaper. The analysis looked at Billboard's top 20 singles and albums, as well as CMJ's top 20 albums, to account for indie releases.
The results of the Techspot study showed that Amazon offers a better album price than iTunes 77.5% of the time. For shoppers purchasing Billboard's top albums, Amazon music downloads are cheaper 84% of the time. Looking at the price difference of 160 albums across the stores, Amazon's albums averaged $1.08 cheaper.
While not always matching Amazon's low prices, flash sales on Google Play made it a lower priced alternative to iTunes, as well.
But lower prices have not meant more sales. according NPD Group syurveys, 63% of all digital music sales till happen through iTunes.
This got me thinking of Amie Street. They had a great business model, which I thought had promise.
http://techcrunch.com/2010/09/08/amazon-acquires-amie-street-but-not-in-a-good-way/
People just get used to things. Apple is known for music so people will default to itunes even if there’s a better option.
I had used Amazon almost exclusively for years, but I recently switched to iTunes, and I told Amazon why: their service has become completely unacceptable. iTunes makes purchasing and downloading as easy and intuitive as Amazon USED to be. Now, it’s a gawdful mess. I just don’t have the time to run the gauntlet that Amazon has become , so it’s iTunes from now on. I just hadn’t realized that iTunes is more popular. I had always thought that Amazon was THE place to buy music. I guess that’s because that was MY place. No more.