Well, I guess my point was that while there were some small label artists or lame "industry approved" and overexpensive storefronts (possibly only there to provide a counterargument for RIAA's persecution of music sharers), Apple's iTunes was the first "real" music store featuring artists from the Big 3: Sony, BMG, WEA and featuring a real product. Before iTunes, there wasn't a viable industry.<br>
<br>It's not like Apple came late to the party and through their evil use of DRM and monopoly somehow wrested control of the market from others - before them there wasn't a market.<br><br>Jeffrey.<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">
On Fri, Oct 31, 2008 at 4:44 PM, Justin Dugger <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:jldugger@gmail.com">jldugger@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
<br><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_music_store" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_music_store</a> disagrees. Apple<br>
didn't invent online music retailing. They were just the first group<br>
able to negotiate with the big label cartels. Several others had tried<br>
and had to go without. Napster famously ignored the labels and money<br>
all together until it was too late (ironically, the pressplay Music<br>
Store created afterwards was eventually used to relaunch Napster).<br>
<br></blockquote></div><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><br>"He that would make his own liberty secure must guard even his enemy from oppression; for if he violates this duty he establishes a precedent that will reach to himself." -- Thomas Paine<br>