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Why EMusic (used to) get it (and Apple didn't)

There has been an enormous amount of press related to Apple's new Music Store online music service. Most of it has focused on the major labels that have signed up or, in the case of the Wall Street Journal, the claim that Apple doesn't treat its users like criminals. I actually think that EMusic does a better job of treating its users like honest folks and provides a better service overall. Here's why:

• No DRM or crippled files

  Unlike Apple's DRM equiped AAC files, EMusic provides standard MP3 files with ID3v2 tags and with no restrictions. This alone indicates to me that EMusic understands the market far better than any other service (except, perhaps Napster did). In the US, the Audio Home Recording Act (AHRA) provides immunity from prosecution for non-commercial distribution of personal copies (with some caveats) and EMusic recognizes this. Their FAQ on "How does EMusic protect against piracy?" is worth quoting:

  Very simple -- we trust our customers. We believe that if downloadable music is presented in an inexpensive and flexible way, most consumers will do the right thing. EMusic does not include any type of Digital Rights Management or complex security rules in our music files -- just pure, open MP3. In addition, we provide our customers with extremely flexible rights for the music they purchase and download, allowing them to easily transfer their music files to portable MP3 players and burn them on to compact discs using CD-R.

  They also have a description of MP3 User rights and responsibilities that includes most of the AHRA granted rights. Space and time shifting are most certainly allowed. RIAA disagrees with this interpretation since they claim that multipurpose CD-ROMs are not conforming devices. However, because the labels have signed agreements with EMusic, they can set the terms independent of RIAA's interpretation.

• Cross platform (no longer: No software required)

  Apple's service currently only works on Macintoshes and requires that the iTunes program be installed. They have plans to support Windows (as indicated in this Register article), but what about Linux, BSD, OS/2, and VMS? EMusic used to only require a web user agent with Javascript, but as of 1 May 2003 they are now requiring their own download manager to be used. While it is somewhat cross platform (Linux x86, Mac OS X, and Windows), it no longer gives EMusic an advantage in this category. However, since the files are still standard MP3's, it will work with any portable player and they can be burned to CDDA CDs. Apple only supports their own iPod.

• Searchable without setup / subscription

  You can go to EMusic now and search for your favorite artist, with no setup or subscription required. You can even listen to 30 second samples before signing up for anything. I have no idea if any of the music that I like is on Apple's service because I have not signed up for their service, nor do I have an OS X Macintosh. You can, however, use iTunes to search Apple's Music Store and listen to 30 second samples without having to sign up.

• Flat rate

  Apple charges $0.99 per song. EMusic charges a flat rate per month that is only $10/month for 1 year or $15/month for 3 months. That's equal to one album from Apple per month for the 1 year subscription. I know that some people prefer per-track payments, but with my music habits that would soon lead to a dwindling bank account...

• Full albums

  EMusic has complete albums available and you can select which songs you want from them. For some albums, Apple only has a few songs and for others you must purchase the entire album. I suspect this is due to licensing problems with the labels, but it is rather inconvienent for the end user. For the entire album purchase, it is typically less expensive than the real CD, but might still be $9.99 or $12.99.

• Worthwhile free trial

  EMusic offers a 50 song free trial with registration. That would cost you $49.50 from Apple. Apple only offers the 30 second samples for free.

• No longer: External program integration

  Obviously, Apple's service only works with iTunes. EMusic had published the API so that many other tools could interface with it, including Apple's own iTunes. There were also Linux tools that will download entire albums, cover art and details, such as zinf, but the changes instituted on 1 May 2003 broke compatibility with all the third party tools. This is a bad move in my opinion.

What could they do better?

• Better recommendations

  I haven't been as happy with EMusic's suggestions as I have with Netflix. With Netflix I can rate movies on a scale of 1 to 5 and it then makes very good suggestions for other movies that I might like. EMusic bases its suggestions on songs that you have downloaded, regardless of your enjoyment of the track.

• Lyrics

  I would like to have lyrics to go with the cover art, but that is something of a pipe dream.

• Better searchability

  The EMusic search engine is decent. If they don't have an artist that you want, typically they have a list of other similar artists. I would like to have the ability to search by lyrics as well, since half the time I am looking for the song that sounds like...

• More details, reviews, etc

  Some albums and artists have blurbs about the artists. Hopefully this will be fleshed out over time. Links to the artists' websites, fan sites, etc.

• Community

  There are message boards for some degree of community, but they are very broad by categories. An IRC like service (as provided by Napster) would be nice, as would the ability to comment on particular artists, albums and tracks. Half the time when I'm searching for a random song, I would appreciate some sort of feedback from other enthusiasts.

So, those are my thoughts. Let me know your's: hudson@swcp.com.