I’m not feeling the love, MTV. It was just a couple of months ago that I lamented the lack of Mac support in your Über streaming video site, now you’re back again to rub it in with another incompatible “U-themed” media service?
MTV has become just the latest in a long line of companies to enter the market for digital music and video downloads. Like many of its competitors, MTV has jumped into bed with Microsoft, using Redmond’s Windows Media DRM solution. MTV’s URGE will become the default music store bundled with Microsoft’s Windows Media Player software, but it will only be available on the PC. And, of course, the store is also incompatible with the iPod. The pricing of the store is the familiar $0.99 per track and $9.95 per album, with $9.95 and $14.95 per month subscription services—guess which one you’ll need to pay if you want to play your music on a portable device. Right.
Will MTV fare better than Rhapsody and Napster? On one hand, they do have a huge amount of exclusive content they can leverage. On the other, they have to contend with iTunes, which is still dominating the market like Albert Einstein at a science trivia contest. The Mac marketshare might not be high enough to do significant damage, but the incompatibility with the iPod can’t be good for them.
Sorry MTV, but you’re so very ’80s.
Update: Cyrus says to watch MacCentral.com for his review of URGE later this week.
Damn whatever MTV do against Apple!!!! I LOVEEE APPLEEEE!! GO Apple GO!
I'm so scared. You mean iPod users won't have access to MTV's drugged-out waste-product rappers?
Which is why I feel no remorse about Apple not licensing their DRM Fairplay to other parties. Places like MTV still ignore the Mac. Had Apple never created iTunes or the iPod, not a single company out there would have created anything for the Mac. At least Apple gets to laugh all the way to the bank! F-MTV!!!
Why bother making the service at all if it's not compatible with iPods. They make up what, like 80%+ of the MP3 Player market?
How do they expect to compete if less than 20% of MP3 Players out there can play the songs.
I agree with all the previous posts. Before the iPod, using any kind of mp3 player with a Mac was tedious. The iPod and iTunes were a cross platform stroke of genius that won't be overtaken or overshadowed simply because MTV decided to jump into bed with MS. The wise move would have been to copy Apple and make the content available to all, even if they were to string Mac users along for a little while it would have been better than not making it available at all. Good luck MTV, you're gonna need it.