Comes With Music... But No One Cares

from the thank-you-drm dept

Mon, Oct 19th 2009 5:22pm — Mike Masnick

Nokia got a lot of attention when it launched its "Comes With Music" concept -- where you buy a phone that comes with "free" all-you-can-eat music downloads for one year. Of course, the music comes wrapped in annoying DRM, though the music will keep playing (thankfully), after the year is up. Still, it seems like people aren't buying for the most part. A recent report shows only 107,000 users worldwide. This must be a blow to the major record labels who always seem to insist that "free music" drives pretty much every other business model. For example, BPI continues to insist that ISPs are basing their own business model on people sharing "free music." And you have record labels who are pissed off because they think that video games Rock Band and Guitar Hero aren't paying enough for all the benefit they get from the music. And, of course, there are all those collection societies claiming that every business that plays any kind of music needs to pay more, because it must be all that music that brings in the business. Well, it looks like Nokia is proving them all wrong. The music, by itself, doesn't seem to attract all that much business at all. Perhaps everyone should be asking for a refund.

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Filed Under: comes with music, music, value
Companies: nokia

16 Comments

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Bobby Rootcake, 19 Oct 2009 @ 5:42pm

well
One issue, is Nokia isn't exactly a teenagers phone here in the USA... so visibility was one issue. DRM kept me away from this, that is another issue like you said. Sadly I like Nokia but if they are losing their butt on this it really isn't worth provide the music industry wrong.
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ChadBroChill (profile), 19 Oct 2009 @ 6:24pm

Not the music itself
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ChadBroChill (profile), 19 Oct 2009 @ 6:27pm

Not the music itself
People want music on their own terms. If it is not easy and convenient, people would rather do it in a way that is. This idea of a phone that downloads music is 1) not the way that many people want to consume their music all the time, and 2) not terribly convenient. So, it is not the music itself that determines whether or not something like this is successful, it is the way it is delivered, and the method in which it is utilized.
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Oct 2009 @ 6:36pm

Nokia has a phone with free music? Nice advertising.
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Ilfar, 19 Oct 2009 @ 7:36pm

It's not "free" music!
In New Zealand, the basic data plan is that the first 10Mb per day cost you one dollar, you pay the dollar no matter how much or little of that 10Mb you use. After that, standard $0.50 per Mb apply. So you can download, what? A song and a half?

I took one look at the deal, and just threw it out. Even with the data plans aside, I expected (I haven't bothered to look) that it would be DRM-hell. I'm surprised to read that the music keeps going after the year is up too, but not enough to bother with it.

Finally, their application and games store offerings are not particularly pleasant to browse through. I expect a Nokia music store to be just as unpleasant.
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Allen (profile), 19 Oct 2009 @ 9:25pm

Re: It's not "free" music!
I was going to say this is more a reflection of the iPod v any other media player. But if they are charging for the download then you dont even have to look there.
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Skeptical Cynic (profile), 19 Oct 2009 @ 9:27pm

Really how much music are you going to get...
when it is tied to a phone.
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Chuck Norris' Enemy (deceased) (profile), 19 Oct 2009 @ 9:52pm

Unmatched Catalog
I am pretty sure you can get all music you want for free...without a phone or DRM.
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Anonymous Coward, 19 Oct 2009 @ 10:29pm

because it must be all that music that brings in the business

Massive over generalization, a total fabrication and lie, outright.

The music, say in a restaurant, is one of many pieces of a puzzle of what works and what doesn't. Nobody in the PSA has claimed that music is the only reason.

The rest of this post is pretty much another massive Techdirt reach, attempting to come to a slam dunk conclusion based on almost unrelated "factoids".
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Ben, 20 Oct 2009 @ 12:25am

That is funny. I am sorry to hear Nokia is getting hurt on this but I think it is worth it to see Big Media getting their crap thrown back at them. You know how it will get spun though, It must be Nokia's fault some how, maybe we can get money out of them for hurting our music industry.

We are losing profits from this, see here on this line my four year old drew on some graph paper? Yeah the line under the red thing that looks like a house? No, ignore the yellow thing that looks like a sun and the brown thing that looks like a horse. Those are highlights. Its the green thing that looks like a hill we are worried about.
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Mike Masnick (profile), 20 Oct 2009 @ 12:38am

Re:
Massive over generalization, a total fabrication and lie, outright.

No, actually quite accurate. I've spent a lot of time with those folks, and it's pretty much what they say.
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techflaws.org (profile), 20 Oct 2009 @ 3:22am

AC filter anyone?
So when do we get a setting to block out all those puny cowards?
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Jessy, 20 Oct 2009 @ 3:34am

I think the reality is the music industry want's it both ways a paid download costs them a fraction of the CD, DVD would so their margins are huge. But they find everyone (ok not everyone) are downloading music for FREE.

I think they have to accept the future is finding a way to charge the websites for hosting the free stuff as they can't find a way of stopping it whilst making it accessible.

In the UK many of the bigger more established groups have launched CD's by them being given away in newspapers (presumably for a healthy sum).

This way the royalties are paid upfront and the record companies make the profit in one hit!

Maybe they can work out a way for this model to work online who knows?
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www.eZee.se (profile), 20 Oct 2009 @ 5:28am

I have an iphone and a nokia 5800,
actually, let me correct that, HAD an iphone, i gave that 3gs piece of junk away and am very happy with my 5800. I still use the plan from the 3gs to tether my laptop via my 5800 so not a real loss.

In Sweden "comes with music" is not unlimited with the 5800.. i got a voucher for a bunch of songs but never used it because of DRM etc (same old reasons, not worth mentioning here). Anyone want that voucher please message me on ezee.se, its yours, free, no strings attached, no promotion, because frankly its a piece of junk and not worth the paper the passcode is printed on.

I pretty much immd got on p2p and downloaded all the songs i wanted, then spotify came along and now i rip the songs i want with wiretap pro (mac) or Replay music (windows).

I use only 4 of my fingers to play music on my phone or to rip music from spotify or to download my music... the middle finger i save for the music industry.

:))
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Anonymous Coward, 20 Oct 2009 @ 5:28am

Re:
The problem is the record companies had a distribution monopoly for decades. Monopolies = free money.

They've lost the monopoly on distribution. So they've started to lean on the only monopoly they've got left, and that's copyright.

It's not that they want it both ways, they aren't thinking in terms of fair. They just want more money. And that's why they can't agree to any online distribution. It costs a fraction of what CD distribution costs.

As soon as a major record label moves to a free model, it's over. No customer is going to understand paying for it ever again. Lots of industry people who were needed when CDs were generating money will not be needed any longer.

The industry will be streamlined, and that's what they are fighting.
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ryanve (profile), 20 Oct 2009 @ 8:22am

Re: Not the music itself
I agree—it's about the service, the accessibility, and flexibility.
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