Apple-HBO announcement will shake up the iTunes Store
Posted by Dennis Sellers 
May 16, 2008 at 7:47am
This week it was announced that programming from HBO is now available for purchase and download on the iTunes Store. However, in a major change, the HBO shows will have flexible pricing. And I’m afraid that, though it may be a necessary evil, it’s going to mar the simplicity of the online store.
Here’s the deal: Sex and the City, The Wire and Flight of the Conchords are US$1.99 per episode, and The Sopranos, Deadwood and Rome are $2.99 per episode. Previously, all TV show episodes were $1.99.
Personally, I like the simplicity of the iTunes Store. I also feel the set-up makes the online store attractive to new users as the pricing structure is (or has been) easy to understand. On the other hand, I understand why it may be necessary to change the model.
Content providers obviously want flexible pricing (witness NBC’s ongoing brouhaha with Apple), and our favorite tech company has to be flexible in its negotiations with them. The HBO deal will show that Apple isn’t as intractable and domineering as it’s been in the past. Heck, look for NBC to return to the iTunes fold.
The HBO deal will mean more and more TV shows, movies, songs and albums at varied pricing. And though I’m not keen on the move, if it means some “discount bin” offers at the iTunes Store, well, I’m all for that. On the other hand, if the studios and record companies get greedy and flexible pricing leads to exorbitant prices, iTunes will suffer, the content providers will suffer and piracy will rise.
Of course, the studios and record companies would never get greedy. Would they?
(By the way, Daniel Dan Eran of Roughly Drafted Magazine has a different take on the HBO-Apple deal. You can read his thoughts here.)
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hm Says:
I actually support variable pricing for video and static pricing for music. And there is the reason why. Production costs. A Bare Bones production is multiple millions of dollars. The typical music production now probably doesn’t crack $200k for 70% of all artists. The equipment costs are massive for video and the level of involved personnel. If you want good quality video it’s going to cost you.
Posted on May 16, 2008
Al Says:
I don’t know where this idea that price uniformity or simplicity is one of the big attractions of iTunes came from. Breadth of selection and ease of purchase/download is the big attraction of iTunes --that you can find everything you want without having to shop other websites. Customers will not be driven away because there are no longer three standard prices in iTunes. As long as prices are competitive, people won’t mind, they’re not that stupid. If they were, people would be running out of supermarkets screaming their heads off in panic and confusion over the thousands of different prices that confronted them there.
Posted on May 16, 2008
Gary Says:
People of the world are ready for variable pricing. Downloading content is an established practise. Variable pricing is a reality of consumer life.
Posted on May 17, 2008
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Dennis Sellers
Dennis has been a newspaper editor/reporter (seven years) and teacher (seven years). He has over 4,000 magazine, newspaper and online articles to his credit. He has also covered the Mac and tech industries for over a decade for such online publications as MacCentral, MacMinute and now MacsimumNews.
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Scott Says:
Well, not all pricing was $1.99. NOVA from PBS costs $4.99. Some of the History channel specials cost $3.99. Back in the day, and unsurprisingly (given NBC/Universal’s...greed), short clips from Sataurday night live cost $1.99, just like music videos.
So variable pricing has been going on on iTunes for a while, just not in a high profile way.
Posted on May 16, 2008