SOUTH African music fans will be spoilt for choice as technology company Apple on Tuesday launched its online iTunes Store in the country.
Although nine years have passed since Apple first introduced the online store, the news will be welcomed by customers who will have access to 20-million songs by international and local artists, at a cost of roughly R6.99 to R8.99 a song.
SOUTH African music fans will be spoilt for choice as technology company Apple on Tuesday launched its online iTunes Store in the country.
Although nine years have passed since Apple first introduced the online store, the news will be welcomed by customers who will have access to 20-million songs by international and local artists, at a cost of roughly R6.99 to R8.99 a song.
For local musicians, the launch will provide them with another platform to sell their music at a time when physical CD sales are declining globally.
The launch also comes three months after Simfy Africa introduced its unlimited music download service in South Africa.
Apple said on Tuesday that the iTunes Store would now be available in Russia, Turkey, India, South Africa and 52 additional countries, featuring an “incredible selection” of local and international music from all the major labels and thousands of independent labels.
The iTunes Store features local artists such as Zahara in South Africa, Elka in Russia, Sezen Aksu in Turkey and AR Rahman in India, alongside international artists and classical musicians.
Apple has also made movies available for rent or purchase from the iTunes Store but only for customers in Russia, Turkey, India and Indonesia.
Arthur Goldstuck, MD of technology research provider World Wide Worx, said for many experienced South African iTunes users the launch may seem too little, too late, as they had already found numerous workarounds to overcome Apple’s geographic restrictions.
“However, for the mainstream user, it is a real breakthrough because it means the entire world of recorded music becomes available in digital format,” he said.
Mr Goldstuck said Simfy may have been the catalyst for iTunes finally opening up to South Africa, because of the massive catalogue it made available and the low cost of the service.
“However, it still requires you to use the Simfy software to continue taking advantage of the music you downloaded or to continue streaming the music. Once you’ve bought music on the iTunes Store, you own it, and that is really what the average music buyer wants,” he said.
You can visit the iTunes South Africa Store
Source: www.yomzansi.com
Tagged: iTunes, south africa
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