Over the holiday weekend, an odd story spread across the Internet newsosphere. It seemed plausible enough: actor Bruce Willis, allegedly concerned that his children wouldn’t be able to inherit his iTunes library in the event of his untimely demise, was suing Apple to fix this grave injustice. Only it turned out not to be true. The part about Bruce Willis, that is. The part about how access to the files we “purchase” on iTunes dies when we do? That part is totally true. [More]
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Apple Solves iTunes Account Problem By Locking You Out Of Account
By 4.16.12
Michael was having a pretty minor problem with playing television programs in iTunes. Sure, it doesn’t even rank as the a serious first world problem, but he contacted Apple to get it resolved, because that’s what Apple is supposed to do. A senior representative tried to resolve the problem by resetting his iTunes password. Nice idea if it had worked. It didn’t. Now this cord-cutter, who uses his Apple TV to catch up with favorite shows, can’t watch those shows at all. Being locked out of his iTunes account and all. [More]
People Are Actually Buying Music Again
By 3.6.12
Reports of the music industry’s death may be premature. According to the results of a new study, not only are more people buying music, but some are doing so after hearing the tunes for free on the Internet. [More]
Sony Responds To Bummed Out Fans By Raising The Price On Whitney Houston's Album
By 2.13.12
While fans of Whitney Houston mourned her death, fondly remembering belting her tunes into hairbrushes in bedrooms everywhere, Sony Music appears to be primed and ready to make a big stack of cash off our nostalgic appreciation, hiking up the price of her greatest hits album hours after her demise on Saturday. [More]
Use iTunes Feature To Get Rid Of Awful Music You Shouldn't Have Downloaded
By 9.2.11
When you’re listening to your music collection, it’s easy to get annoyed with yourself for stuffing so many terrible songs that you once liked for some inexplicable reason. Apple knows you all too well, and has provided a feature that helps you shed the chaff. [More]
Apple App Store Charges Over And Over Again For New Operating System
By 7.28.11
Apple’s new version of Mac OS has some new and exciting features, and for Mac fans is a bargain at only $30. It is not, however, worth three times that. Or even $4,000. That’s what some customers have paid, without exactly meaning to. More than one person has come forward complaining that their PayPal accounts, linked to their iTunes accounts, are getting charged for their purchase of OS 10.7 Lion over. And over. And over. [More]
Richard Dreyfuss Does Dramatic Reading Of iTunes EULA
By 6.9.11
Most of us just blindly click “I ACCEPT” when presented with those user license agreements when we install software. I think I would pay a lot more attention if they were all give dramatic readings, like this one actor Richard Dreyfuss did of the Apple iTunes EULA. [More]
Time, Sports Illustrated & Fortune Offer Free iPad Access For New Subscribers
By 5.2.11
Most magazines are now available in digital formats, but very few offer simultaneous print and digital subscriptions for one price. Now a few of Time Inc.’s bigger print products have made a deal with Apple that would give some subscribers access to the iPad version of Time, Sports Illustrated and Fortune magazines for no extra cost. [More]
Rhapsody Threatens To Pull Service From iDevices Over New App Subscription Model
By 2.17.11
Apple has this great new idea: App developers will pay the company 30 percent of in-app sales, including subscriptions. Also, Apple alone gets to keep the customers’ name and contact info, requiring third parties to ask users to opt in to sharing the info with them. Well, the initiative is great for Apple, but not so much for others who may see a hefty cut in their revenues. [More]
iTunes No. 1 In Online Movie Rentals, But For How Long?
By 2.10.11
Those who rent films online — presumably not counting Netflix streamers, who pay monthly subscriptions — use iTunes more than any other service, but Apple’s stranglehold on the market is loosening. [More]
8-Year-Old Girl Racks Up $1,400 Bill Playing "Smurfs Village" iPad Game
By 2.9.11
A 2nd-grader managed to rack up a $1,400 bill for her parents over break while playing the “Smurfs Village”, a Farmville-esque iPad game, reports the Washington Post. Like many of these app-based games, the game is free but you can purchase in-app upgrades, with real money, to speed your progress. In this case, you can get a “bucket of snowflakes” for $19 or a “wagon of smurfberries” for $99. Needless to say, her mother became quite blue in the face. [More]
Google Shopper App Recognizes Products By Their Cover
By 2.7.11
Google has jumped into the shopping app fray with “Google Shopper,” which stands out from the crowd by being able to id products by their cover art. The feature works on book, CD, DVD, and video game covers. You can also search by voice, along with the usual barcode scanning, local pricematching and the ability to save items. If you’re a RedLaser fan, this could be a serious contender to replace it on your home screen. The app is free and available on both Android and iOS. [More]
Apple Calls Woman To Tell Her She's Won $10,000; Woman Hangs Up On Apple
By 1.24.11
While it’s a good rule of thumb to hang up the phone on anyone who calls you to tell you that you won a contest, a woman in the UK almost found herself without a $10,000 prize when she didn’t believe it was Apple on the other end of the line. [More]
The Beatles Finally Come To iTunes
By 11.16.10
All day Monday, Apple had been promising some sort of life-changing announcement regarding its iTunes store. Would it be cloud-based streaming for music and video? A change in its pricing? No — it’s the Beatles. [More]
Install iTunes 10 Minus The Bloatware (PC)
By 9.13.10
Like previous versions, iTunes 10 is a hefty hunk of software that actually contains within it 6 different Windows Installer programs that you don’t always need or want. Apple doesn’t let you customize the install, but this guide shows you how to install only the slimmest iTunes footprint you need for your purposes. [More]
iTunes Movie, TV Show Rentals Are On The Way
By 8.25.10
Unless you enjoy buying TV show episodes on iTunes and watching them over and over, you’d probably rather save some money and rent the videos instead. According to the anonymous whispers in the ear of Bloomberg, $1, 48-hour iTunes video rentals from Fox, Disney and other giants are on the way. [More]
Budget-Boosting iPhone Apps
By 8.10.10
Money Highway paved a road to savings by rounding up 75 money-saving iPhone apps. [More]
Yoko: "Don't Hold Your Breath" Waiting For Beatles On iTunes
By 8.6.10
While the overwhelming majority of 20th century rock music is available for digital download through iTunes or some other online outlet, the Beatles catalog continues to remain a holdout. And Yoko Ono, widow of John Lennon, said yesterday that it could be a while before the Fab Four joins the digital download crowd. [More]
