Apple Computer Inc. has launched its iTunes Music Store in Canada . Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced in October plans to open up the Canadian store by the last of November . Apple narrowly missed that deadline after announce on Wednesday that the Canadian iTunes Music Store had been postponed but would be “ coming soon . ”
“ We ’ve got some expectant Canadian artists in the depot right now , ” Eddy Cue , Apple ’s vice - president of Applications , told MacCentral . “ We ’re very excited and happy to be in Canada . ”
This launch mark the fourteenth country where Apple ’s iTunes Music Store has been made available . Apple has been engage the iTunes Music Store in the United States since 2003 . Earlier this class , Apple launched the commercial music download service in the U.K. , France and Germany . At the iPod photo rollout in October , Apple launched the EU iTunes Music Store , which added Austria , Belgium , Finland , Greece , Italy , Luxembourg , The Netherlands , Portugal and Spain .
Cue call Canadian requirement for the iTunes Music Store “ overwhelming ” and noted that the Canadian version of the store features top Canadian artist exclusives . The shop opens with more than 700,000 songs in its depository library , priced at CDN$0.99 per song , which represents a nest egg of about US$ 0.15 per song over the U.S. store . The store also have approximately 9,000 audio books .
In comparison , the U.S. store has over a million Sung in its on-line library , with about the same amount of audio books uncommitted . Apple said the divergence has a lot do with label rights , but more song will be continually added to all store .
“ The U.S. has definitely been a leader , ” say Cue . “ Most of that is because a mass of the label have good clearance data point in the U.S. All entrepot are growing chop-chop — over time there will be fewer and fewer variance between them , but there will always be some . ”
Cue also noted that a team of people has been hired in Canada to focus entirely on the Canadian euphony storage and recording label relations . These citizenry will make certain Canadian artists get on the store as soon as possible .
song downloaded through the Canadian iTunes Music Store feature the same personal habit rights as iTunes stores in other countries : call can be played on up to five personal computing machine and an unlimited number of iPods , 1 can be burned onto an unlimited number of compact disc , and the same playlist can be burned onto disc up to seven time .
With the opening of the EU store last calendar month , the Canadian store this calendar month and , of course of action , the United States , Apple take that the iTunes Music Store now reaches almost 70 percent of the spherical music market place .
In its late financial quarterly study , Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer shared figures that indicate Apple has more than 70 percentage share of legal medicine downloads . iTunes Music Store and iPod - related accessories account for $ 98 million in revenue for the company during the quaternary quarter .
“ We have very in high spirits expectations for Canada — we intend it ’s a smashing market for us , ” said Cue . “ We have been very successful with the iPod there and we ’ve had a howling amount of e - mails and calls look for the iTunes Music Store in Canada . We cogitate it ’s a perfect fourth dimension to have the storage in Canada . ”
12/02/04 10:45 AM : Updated with details about Canadian computer memory ’s launch .
12/02/04 3:20 PM : update with details from interview with Apple .
