Since the introduction of iTunes, the pay-per-download systems have become terribly popular. This shows that there was a need for these systems. iTunes claims to have sold about 8.000.000 songs since the day they started. Those are quite some, but I doubt if it'll remain this popular, as this just may be a hype.

But okay, let's assume that iTunes will be popular after some time. Of course, other competing services like Napster and MTV will become popular as well (assuming they will offer services that are about equal for a price that's about equal). Will this lead to the starvation of services like KaZaa (and other P2P networks that are mainly used for swapping files for freem, which of course is an illegal thing to do)?

Another thing I'm wondering about, is the future of the CD single. Downloading a single song for 99 cents is way cheaper than buying a 2-song single-cd for $4. Will the single survive?

And what about socalled sampler discs (discs with music from various artitsts). Will they remain popular, or will most people prefer to compile their own compilations with only their favourite songs?

Just some things passing my mind

ill never pay for an mp3. i love cds. ill probably always use kazaa, or an equivalent program. or i wont buy music. without being able to sample (kazaa), i wont know how good a cd is. i wonder how many people are the same way.

btw, i averaged about 5 cds a month when napster was working great, about 2 with kazaa, and now its down to 0. all hail our dvd overlords

I will also never pay for mp3 (or other lossy for that matter). If I'm paying close to retail price, since most of these services offer full album for 9.99, and don't have to pay for CD media, jewel case, artwork, distribution - I should get a nice FLAC file or similiar. I do download a fair amount of music, but I don't download or share popular artists anyway and I think that most record companies don't aim to please me in the first place and don't care to lose my business - not that they ever got much from me before.

Single? I've rarely bought one, and almost none are made anymore it seems. It's much more convenient for me, if the artist provides a single, full length song available to download from their web page. It's legal for the consumer, it's easy for the band, it's a win-win. An example of this would be Cauterize. They offer the first track of their CD in it's entirety (streaming). It was enough to convince me to buy it. Would I have bought it after listening to a sample? Maybe. But it's a lot easier to fake a good 30 seconds than fake a whole song.

But meh. The only CDs I've been buying lately are out of print ones or rare ones. For anyone looking at strictly legal options, I'd highly recommend both ebay and half.com - great resources.

I too feel the same way. We usually are sampled by a hit song an artist or group releases and upon purchase of the entire album are utterly disappointed. I feel there is nothing wrong with sampling music.

Further, there is no compilation like your own compiliation. Your own order, choice of the 2sec gap (which I usually remove), and such not. Different genre of music are best heard in diff styles and diff ways which are diff to all us consumers and users.

I prefer WinMX by the way. When WinMX doesnt have what I need, I too resort to Kazaa Lite. Also, I have recently become a fan of Invision (an IRC overlay client).

OFF TOPIC: Where is the cdfreaks located on IRC???

I prefer winmx also. Been using it since napster went down. I usually download sample music of obscure bands and older out of print music. Although I still restore vinyl when I get a little spare time. I also have a fairly large collection of downloaded music videos, not sure what the laws are regarding that ? Anyone know if mpegs are illegal to share also?

@ xtacy

http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread....threadid=49507

i think that has all kinds of info

I think we should follow the advice of this article...


STAY OUT OF COURT - USE LEGAL 'SHARING'
The Recording Industry Association of America has filed 300 lawsuits against alleged file swappers. Don't want to become victim number 301? Then it's time to switch from programs like Kazaa and Morpheus to a legal music download service. Below are the options that will help keep your life free of lawsuits. Also, songs purchased on legal services are more reliably of a higher quality than those downloaded from a peer-to-peer network where you're never quite sure if the file was properly labelled, ripped on an underperforming computer or contained a virus.
-------------------------------------------------

Emusic.com
  The good: Offers songs in the MP3 format;
  diverse catalog of independent labels;
  works on any platform.
  The bad: Restricts the number of songs you can download per month;
   you must download and install a separate app;
  no popular commercial recordings;
   can't stream music.
  Search: 200,000 songs
  Pricing: You can choose 40 downloads for $9.99 or 65 downloads for $14.99.
-------------------------------------------------

Pressplay.com
  The good: Unlimited downloads and unrestricted streams;
  music transfer to many portable players;
  speedy burning now powered by Roxio.
  The bad: Somewhat pricey burns;
  a streamed song doesn't begin to play until all of it is buffered;
  no Mac version.
  Search: 300,000 songs
  Pricing: $9.95 a month gives you unlimited streaming and downloading (but not burning), $17.95 a month adds 10 burnable downloads, and $179.40 a year allows unlimited streaming and downloading plus 120 burnable downloads.
-------------------------------------------------

MusicNet.com
  The good: Pretty, ad-free interface.
  The bad: Must subscribe to and run AOL; slow searches;
  hard-to-manage playlists;
  streaming delays;
  poorly organized.
  Search: 300,000 songs
  Pricing: For $3.95 a month, you can download (but not burn) 20 songs and stream 20 more;
  $8.95 gives you unlimited downloads and streams;
  and for $17.95 you can also burn 10 songs per month.
-------------------------------------------------

iTunes.com
  The good: Easy to browse, search, and buy music;
  no subscription fee;
  no extra costs for burning or moving tunes;
  uses AAC format;
  excellent integration with iTunes;
  fast, dependable downloads;
  can play files on up to three Macs.
  The bad: Little information about artists and tracks; music transfer restrictions; not enough classical-music offerings.
  Search: 400,000 songs
  Pricing: $0.99 per track
-------------------------------------------------

MusicMatch.com
  The good: All-in-one player, ripper, encoder, burner, online radio receiver, music manager, MP3 player loader, and download service;
  secure songs transfer to MP3 players;
  streamlined interface;
  supports Universal Plug and Play devices.
  The bad: Some performance problems;
  limited community features.
  Search: 250,000 songs
  Pricing: $0.79 per track
-------------------------------------------------

Listen.com
  The good: Attractive and intuitive interface;
   rich biographical information on artists;
   radio stations allow you to skip songs; lets you access your music from any Web-connected PC.
  The bad: Cheapest plan won't let you download songs;
   can't save songs to portable players.
  Search: 330,000 songs
  Pricing: $0.79 per track
-------------------------------------------------

BuyMusic.com
  The good: No subscription fee; zippy downloads.
  The bad: Inconsistent pricing and usage rules;
  limited catalog;
  downloaded music tied to one computer;
  still no transferring to portable devices.
  Search: 300,000 songs
  Pricing: $0.79 per track
-------------------------------------------------

Napster.com
  The good: Easy to use;
   currently offers a larger catalog than the competition;
  lets you browse other users' music;
  unlimited burning of purchased tracks;
   tracks play on any device that supports secure WMA files.
  The bad: Windows 2000/XP only;
  some performance issues;
  downloaded music tied to one computer; contains a few mislabeled files.
  Search: 500,000 songs
  Pricing: $0.99 per track
-------------------------------------------------

Chimp3.com
  The good: Offers songs in the MP3 format;
  easy interface; no subscription fee;
  unlimited burning of purchased tracks.
  The bad: Several hours wait for order;
  no information about artists;
  can't stream music.
  Search: 200,000 songs
  Pricing: Complete albums from $1.95
-------------------------------------------------

MSN.co.uk
  The good: Easy, ad-free interface; no subscription fee.
  The bad: music can be played only with Windows Media Player;
  service is available only for UK, France and Germany.
  Search: 250,000 songs
  Pricing: 0.99 euro per track (about $1.10)
-------------------------------------------------

Liquid.com
  The good: Nice clean interface;
  good content;
  AAC ripping.
  The bad: Need permissions;
  can't save songs to portable players.
  Search: 200,000 songs
  Pricing: $0.99 per track
-------------------------------------------------

Other "pay-to-play" services include:
  aolmusic.com, audiocandy.com, bestbuy.com, bet.com, catsmusic.com, circuitcity.com, collegeconcerts.com, cornercd.com, dimple.com, dothehole.com, earwax.com, efetus.com, exitosmusical.com, facethemusic.com, fullaudio.com, fye.com, galleryofsound.com, independentrecord.com, instavid.com, latinoise.com, burnitfirst.com, mainstreetmusic.com, millenniummusic.com, miramag.com, mp3.com, mtv.com, musicmillennium.com, musicrebellion.com, netscape.com/music, newworldrecord.com, phillysoulclassics.com, qhut.com, rasputinmusic.com, recordandtapetraders.com, rollingstone.com, samgoody.com, spinner.com, streamwaves.com, tophitsmusic.com, towerrecords.com, windowsmedia.com.

[edit]
Merged this reply to a very old (illegal) thread with this thread.
Helpful links I must say!
[/edit]

Thanks for that excellent post joney!

I never heard of an MP3 containing a virus before, but that's why anti-virus software are there for.

BTW I prefer FTP.

Usenet isn't bad either if you don't mind looking around for a while.

Too damn many restrictions on the pay services mentioned. Could someone please get it right? If I buy the track, I want to use it where/when/how I please and it must be of good bitrate/quality. Otherwise, they can all suck my nuts.

How about the price people? Yesterday I was reading the newspaper and saw the advertisement of a media shop near here.. they sell many of the newest albums for just 9.99! That's the same price that's asked on iTunes/Napster etc... considering the fact that you don't get a case, no booklet, no pressed disc and compressed (with lossy quality) music, I think that the legal services are way too expensive... it should be an interesting alternative for people, but as I see it, they are way to expensive. Will people realize this?

Exactly, I can get actual CDs cheaper than I can get the downloads - I love eBay and half.com now, my primary sources for discs. I would say I download almost all my music first though. Another good site is http://www.deepdiscountcd.com/ , good prices and free shipping (though it's slow).

i have no idea what anyone is REALLy talking about. i want to know but i am fresh and have burned sc's a few yrs ago then when i tried again i would always catch a virus, now i miss the mustic. software too. yet i am in the position of livibg on sisability so can no go to afford to pay high price of so caled leagal site.
i want to contribute to this site at this time i am looking for advice of a safe way to download with out riosky virus. any help greatly appreiated