Entertainment For Lively Minds
New eMusic Pricing in the UK
You might remember that there was a fuss on the other side of the Pond last year when eMusic changed the packages for its members - lots of angry comments on messageboards and leaving the club. When I logged in today for a quick browse, I was greeted with messages telling me that the pricing for the UK (and I think elsewhere) is changing in November (no date actually specified).
Instead of getting so many credits per month, members will now have money at their disposal with each track costing 42p. Currently, I get 40 tracks for £10.99. Simple maths says that this means that I can only download 26 tracks. However, eMusic says that I will get a bonus of £5.81, bringing my spending ability back to 40. At least it says that I will get this bonus in November, so far I have not found anywhere which explicitly states that this bonus will continue into the future.
eMusic says that this will encourage more record companies and artists to come on board, giving greater choice. It also says that it will be able to discount some music, benefiting members. However, that means (though it does not say it) that it will also be able to put up the price of some tracks - I expect the price of longer tracks to rise, so no more loading complete symphonies for the price of 3 or 4 credits. (In fact you can currently get whole operas for one credit per Act).
I know that there are a number of eMusic users amongst the Massive. What do people think? Good thing or bad, or won't it make much difference?
Fraser, if there is an issue with discussing another company's policies on the blog, please remove this thread.
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I'm a bit suspicious
and not at all hopeful that my once pitiful allowance of 20 tunes monthly will go up at all. They may end up taking the Amazon/airline pricing model. In that case, you may see seemingly random price fluxuations where you want to gamble the the price may go down in a few weeks' time or (more likely) that the album/book/seat you bought is cheaper today than it was last week when you bought it. Me, I'll keep an eye on it and revue whether I stay in.
I'm on one of the early subscriptions
So I get 75 downloads for £15. I saw the email this morning and have just checked my account. The wording seems pretty clear that I will still be able to download the same number of tracks (maybe even more - presume that if I download cheap tracks, I can spend my credit more wisely).
Not sure how long it will last but it seems that I will get £31.50 of credits for my £15. The terminology they use if 'from November' so my interpretation of that is that it will be ongoing.
I do like eMusic and I also like the fact that it supports its early supporters. I would review my subscription if I lost my deal though.
75 for £15?
Wow. Here's to being an early adopter. That is a very good deal.
Wow! that's expensive!
I'm on a 90 tracks for £12.79 deal (I've been a subscriber for at least 8 years - back when it was $10 a month for as much as you could download) and anything approaching 42p a track is going to make me seriously consider stopping.
Stopping would probably be no bad thing. I feel very tied to Emusic as I reckon that albums cost about £1.40 each so anywhere else seems atronomic in comparison (I know it's not).
I won't see the email until I get home.....
If you can get onto the site
there is a message at the top of the page, click on it, log in and you'll find all the info there.
75 for £15, 90 for £13
you've got to start wondering what, if anything, the artist is seeing from that.
Same here
I'm on an early package - 65 tunes for £9.58 a month which is a bargain. According to this new package I pay the same amount but have £27.30 on my account each month. This sounds great, in fact it sounds too good to last, so I will keep an eye on it. Would be sorry to lose it though, it's provided my latest earworm tune - to link to another thread - You Go by The Keston Cobbler's Club.
and again
I'm on 50 tracks for £11.99 -not quite early, but looks increasing value. I read the amil to imply that the top up amount would continue to be added, but lets wait and see.
The dilema will be if they change it a lot. At the moment I use it to experiment a fair bit, so maybe half of my purchases are things I wouldn't otherwsie buy. If it gets closer in pricing to other services then the restricted choice they offer will become a big issue. So for example 42p for a 10 track album is still not bad for soemthing just out, but if it is say a 15 track album or a couple of years then they are right up against amazon or fopp - and both of those have a wider choice.
Same
I'm on the 65 tracks for £9.58 also. I'm pleased I will still get my 65 tracks - clearly, it's suddenly an even more impressive deal. It will be interesting to see if it stays at that. From some people on a mailing list I subscribe to this is not the state of play in the US where it sounds as though people have had their plans changed.
I don't think the problem for me will be restricted choice as they are going to open it up to major labels so there will be too much choice. I like the fact I discover indie releases that may not otherwise catch my attention. eMusic's lack of choice and difference to Amazon and iTunes are what makes it attractive to me. Adding in more familiar albums by say, artists on Universal, will make those more obscure discoveries harder to find and, for me, that will be a shame.
Interesting view
I guess it depends on how you buy. I tend to read reviews of things that look interesting and then see if emusic has them. Because they are so cheap i don't mind taking the risk. If they get more expensive then I'll be more risk adverse, and at that point the restriction on choice may become an issue. All that said, I do hope not as I actually really enjoy using the account.
US was different
The US change just over a year ago was done in a very different way. Two big changes came in at the same time. First was the change to albums having a credit rating which means that it is possible on occasion to buy a 100 track album for 12 credits - more usually there are lots of 14 or 15 track albums available for 12 credits. Then there was the addition of the Sony/CBS/Epic etc back catalog (sic) at which point the plan prices changed and most people had their plans changed they now have stuff like the Rhino catalogue to choose from
At the moment it doesn't look like we're getting extra labels.
I had great fun on holiday last year just after the change over when you could still get 100 track download cards in the shops for $30 - I bought 4 and, as they were effectively 100 credits and because of a "loyalty" deal, I managed to get just over 500 tracks which filled some big gaps in my collection.
The wording used here is 'Lock In'
If you’d like to upgrade your plan to a different Preferred plan to lock in an even better monthly bonus you will have a limited amount of time to do so on the Plan Options page after November 2010.
I'm happy with what I've read today. But I'll be keeping a close eye on it.
But the 'new' plans look awful
Just had a look at the new plans they aare offering and they are all more expensive that I (and most of those quoted above) have now. At the higher rates Im not sure i would have been tempted in the first place.
But surely 'lock-in' applies equally to current schemes
So it would suggest all of us currently on nice, long-standing deals will stay locked into those deals.
Which will indeed be nice, especially if the degree of choice improves as promised - win-win, possibly?
I'll also be watching it closely
I'm on 100 tunes at £19.99 - that obviously translates to £42 in credit - not too bad.
I do like Emusic for the choice it has. The more obscure the better and the expressed fears above of widening its library resulting in a dilution of the uniqueness of the service is one that I share.
Balance carry-over?
To quote from the website:
Has that always been the case? I always thought if I didn't spend my points in any one month, the surplus was lost forever at the end of the month?
Carry forward?
I assumed that it means that you can use some of next month's allowance which of course means that you're not able to cancel for another month. I like that idea, it means that I won't have to keep credits until the last day of the month, just in case.
Variable pricing
will mean that you may not have 42p left so I would imagine it means that any amount less than 42p will be carried over.
less than 42p
I would agree that if you're under 42p and can't buy a SINGLE track, that is all that will carry over. Still need to use the rest up, I would think.
Deal wise, I'm on 40 tracks for £6.39 (was equivalent of $10 when I started) which will bump up to £16.80, so seems to be still a good deal, but like others, I'll be keeping an eye on it.
Ah gotcha
That makes sense I suppose. *lightbulb clicks on above head*
Early Adopter Here Too
I only get 40 tracks and they cost about a fiver, and that's enough music for me, I can't keep up with that and other physical CD purchases as it is, and occasionally lose track of time and lose a few credits. They have varied the plans in the past but are always loyal to those we signed up to. Like others above I like the alternative non-mainstream nature of eMusic, and would hate to see it swamped with current chart music. I have often wondered how the artists make a crust though, and people running smaller labels have complained that the returns are paltry. Being a collector though, I have bought a stack of CDs that I first had as downloads, so see the cheap pricing as a try before you buy policy. I hope that does continue, because if prices jump for us too, I will be off.
Back when the earth was young...
...I was one of the really really early adopters, when you could get unlimited tracks for a fiver a month. Them were the days...I have to say that the prices quoted now make Spotify look like an even better deal.
I'll hang on and see how it goes
Currently get 75 for £15 and have bought a lot of stuff that I probably wouldn't have paid "real money" for, if you see what I mean. I like the way it's monitored my choices and presents me with other stuff in the same genres. But £15 a month is one thing. Any more than that and I'll be off to buy from the much wider range of Amazon (who are generally much cheaper than iTunes) or perhaps pay instead to put Spotify on my phone with its virtually unlimited choice.