Sort of. You can download the program, but as of this post I couldn't find any music in the store. The "We looked
but couldn't find anything" message pops up continually when clicking links to albums.
UPDATE: as of 4:00pn EDT, the Virgin Digital music store still appears empty on my screen, and two
queries to customer service have remained unanswered.
SECOND UPDATE: Individuals at the highest level of Virgin Digital have contacted me about the
problem. Apparently my situation is unusual, and the issue is not a premature launch of a product that
wasn't ready, as I supposed. Assuming we can resolve this, a review is forthcoming.
Anyway, here's the deal:
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Subscription to unlimited listening to 1,000,000+ tracks: $7.99/month. Free unlimited downloads remain playable as long as the subscription is current.
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Purchase tracks: 99 cents. Transfer and burn downloads; usage limitations unclear.
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Marketing, FAQs, and Help files are written in a horrible jokey style that Virgin apparently thinks is hip.
Zack Zalon, president of Virgin Digital, has confidence in the subscription side of the business: "Two or three years out, subscriptions will overtake a la carte because it is a much more interesting proposition, it has just been difficult to articulate to consumers what it is." That jives with the Jupiter forecast from this summer which predicted subscription sales would overtake downloads by 2008.
More to come when the service is working. Go here to download the program.
1. Wow... another entry into the Digital Music biz... just a few days after eBay's launch...
I think that Virgin Digital will probably be successful because they (like eBay actioning off Music Prizes) have quite a differentiation - The Subscription idea...
I actually think that consumers will like this; however, I am not totally sure what all is included with the subscription. So, I am guessing that Virgin's success will depend on what all a subscriber gets for $7.99/month.
All in all, I think this is a good start for Virgin entering the Digital Music Market.
It will be interesting to see if Apple can keep it's market share or if they will loose their majority to Virgin Digital.
Posted at 5:58AM on Dec 19th 2005 by allwaysmusic