Future Boy :: The Empire Strikes Back

Future Boy sheds light on a new media business model startup:

...a startup called Navio that wants to help shift the balance of power back to the media companies. How? Imagine if you went to a music site to buy a single download for 99 cents, but instead you were offered the option to purchase the perpetual right to that song. With this right, you could download the song to your PC, your iPod, or your cell phone in whatever format was appropriate.

The key here is how MUCH for those perpetual rights? I bet $1 million it isn't $0.99. I've long thought that Apple should offer a "future proof" version of iTunes downloads (Higer bit rates and "loss protection"). They could charge slightly more for these versions... In this sense, Navio's approach is the correct one- however I do not believe reverse engineering Apple's DRM is the way to solve the problem and I don't belive they will be price competitive.

Apple has used its power to keep songs at $0.99 in the face of the music industry trying to raise prices.  The music industry trys to extract extra revenue from its customers without providing extra benefits. If Navio is successful, this truly will have moved the elephant.

Link: Business 2.0 :: Online Article :: Future Boy :: The Empire Strikes Back.