EU price probe into Apple iTunes

iTunes is the market leader in downloaded music
The EU has launched a probe into what Apple's online music store iTunes charges users across Europe, accusing it of restricting customer choice.
Brussels believes agreements between Apple and record companies violate EU laws by preventing users in one country buying music from a site elsewhere.

The move follows a complaint by UK body Which? that British users have to pay more to download songs than others.

The Commission's move is unrelated to an agreement, announced on Monday, between iTunes and EMI to make the latter's music available online without piracy protection.

Brussels has written to iTunes and a number of unnamed record companies to notify them of their objections to the way music is sold, the first step in formal proceedings.


We were advised by the music labels and publishers that there were certain legal limits to the rights they could grant us
Apple

"Consumers can only buy music from the iTunes online stores in their country of residence and are therefore restricted in their choice of where to buy music," said EU competition spokesman Jonathan Todd.

Research by Which? in 2005 found that UK users paid 79p (1.16 euros) to download a song compared with 66p (99 euro cents) in France and Germany.

Apple said it had always wanted to offer a fully pan-European service but was restricted by the demands of its music partners.

"We were advised by the music labels and publishers that there were certain legal limits to the rights they could grant us," it said in a statement.

The companies targeted by Brussels have two months in which to respond to the charges.

As I remember it, this was part of the reason iTunes took longer to open in Europe: the different territorial rights. So iTunes are caught between the labels and the legislator on this one.

I have to ask: is it such a big issue?

I don`t doubt that Apple I-Tunes have their business plan in place for a second, but this piece does raises a very big issue.

Do we need sales/charts based by country/USA states and continents etc anymore? It`s a global marketplace now.
As long as people are buying the music and not stealing it, like they have been, we should be happy.

I`m sure I am not the only one to buy CD`s from Amazon in Jersey, for example, because they are cheaper.

I despair that STILL nobody really knows how to run the new generation of music selling, I also think it`s just plain silly that UK money in Europe is being questioned under the "your currency is no good here" law.

It`s plain if Apple don`t have this completely nailed down, they are going to lose out to one of the minnow companies in download sales in the long run.

They are so rich they won`t care, but do we want that running our beloved music, or do we want music lovers?

Ah yes Michael; it is a VITAL issue going right to the core of copyright ownership.

The Internet means there ARE no territories anymore. We are living in a one world universe now but every single lawyer/label in the past has thought "territorial".

Not us - most of our deals are global.

But lawyers and labels CANNOT get their heads around this.

And understandably. A label might be great at promotion in Australia but lousy in America; big in Japan, weak in South America. Which is why I only let Chumbawamba go with EMI for the world OUTSIDE North America, gave the USA to Universal and sold 6.5 million albums from a one hit wonder.

JK2006 wrote:
Ah yes Michael; it is a VITAL issue going right to the core of copyright ownership.

...
I'm actually FOR the idea of reserving rights. Your example of Universal and EMI is telling. Otherwise, it's all-eggs-in-the-same-basket time.

I'm just not too bothered that the Luxembourgers might be getting a few pence off the price I pay for a single track. It seems like a microscopic difference to be investigating. We have more pressing issues to look at, such as payments from YouTube.