Wal-Mart jumped into the DRM-free pool with a big slash yesterday, as the retailer began selling high quality MP3s from major labels, at a price that undercuts iTunes.
The music industry is finally coming around to the realization that the only way to break Apple’s lock on the digital music market is to offer DRM-free music through a variety of online services. The thinking seems to be that the major labels can finally stop the iTunes juggernaut by flooding the market with affordable, high-quality, iPod compatible music. While the plan sounds good in theory, it remains to be seen whether it will actually work. If the Wal-Mart music store is any indication of things to come, the labels might want to prepare for the worst.
I was so intrigued by the possibility of buying unencrypted, cross-platform compatible music, from Wal-Mart that I decided to give the service a try. What follows is the sad and painful story of how I spent most of an afternoon trying to download one 94 cent song:
When I think about DRM-free music, I immediately assume the music is “platform independent”. That’s a geeky way of saying that it will play on an iPod, or a Zen, or a Zune, or anything else for that matter. It goes without saying that DRM-free music should also play on a Windows system, or a Mac, or a Linux box. That’s one of the many advantages of DRM-free music — users aren’t locked into one platform.
Unfortunately, Wal-Mart’s vision of DRM-free music doesn’t include platform independence — as I discovered when I attempted to enter their music store using my Mac.
We’re sorry, your operating system is incompatible. To provide the best download experience, we can no longer support Windows 98, ME or NT. Please visit again after you upgrade to Windows 2000 or XP. Visit our Help section for complete system requirements information.
Hmmm. No mention of Mac OS X — for some reason they automatically assume I’m using Windows ME. But then again, there’s no mention of Windows Vista either. Wal-Mart’s web development team clearly needs to get out more.
While I’m was not happy about the situation, I was prepared to deal with it. I happen to have a Windows system that I keep plugged in for just such occasions. Not a virtual machine, mind you. A real live Dell.
So, I login to my Dell, fire-up Firefox and head over to the Wal-Mart music store. Only to be greeted by this message:
We notice you’re not using Internet Explorer. Other browsers may be able to access our original Music Downloads store which has fewer user features than our latest version but offers the same music. We will be making enhancements to our updated version in the future to support the Firefox browser. If you want to take advantage of all of the features in our updated design now, please get the latest version of Internet Explorer.
At this point I begin to wonder what year it is. Wal-Mart’s music store doesn’t support Mac and it discourages the use of Firefox. I’m beginning to wonder if I’ve somehow time travelled into the past and landed in era when web developers actually believed ActiveX had a future.
Finally, I do the unthinkable. I start Internet Explore. I really can’t remember how long it’s been since I used Internet Explorer, but apparently it’s Wal-Mart’s preferred tool for delivering unencrypted MP3 files to the masses.
When I arrive at the Wal-Mart music store using the latest version of Internet Explorer, I’m promptly admitted without complaint.
Once inside I begin browsing the Wal-Mart catalog. First thing I notice, MP3s and WMAs are all mixed together. In fact, you’ll frequently see the same album listed multiple times — once as WMA and once as MP3. Sometimes albums are listed without an indication of what format they’re being sold in.
Searching is a challenge too. Search on an artist name and you’ll see exactly four albums by that artist. Want more and you have to click (at least) twice to see a full list of available albums by that artist.
It’s pretty clear that Wal-Mart doesn’t want any part of that Web 2.0 nonsense you hear so much about these days.
Eventually I give up searching for music and decide to browse by genre. I start with Rock -> Alternative. I’m happy to find that many alternative rock classics are available from Wal-Mart, including: Ted Nugent’s Greatest Hits, Frampton Comes Alive!, and Meat Loaf Bat Out Of Hell. They even have Jethro Tull. It’s like Wal-Mart has created an online alternative rock superstore.
Since this is only an experiment, I decide to download the Emo classic Do You Feel Like We Do? from Frampton Comes Alive!. That’s when I find out that the song is not sold separately. If I want the song I’ll have to download the whole Frampton Comes Alive! album, and I’m not about to do that. Not even in the name of science.
It occurs to me, as I’m sure it would to anyone in the same situation, that an MP3 of the song can probably be found on Bittorrent pretty easily. Fortunately for Wal-Mart I don’t really want the song.
At this point I’m begin to realize how much time I’ve actually wasted on this experiment. I quickly find an Elvis Costello song available in the MP3 format and add it to my shopping cart, then I start the check out process.
A pop-up warns me: “To make downloading music safe and secure we need to add a component to your computer”.
Huh? I’m downloading music from Wal-Mart, how can it not be “safe and secure”? Are they trying to tell me something about Wal-Mart’s security?
The message goes on to indicate that I need to install the Wal-Mart download manager and a Windows Security Update – despite the fact that the machine I’m using installs all updates automatically and is always current.
Security Update – Your computer needs a security upgrade from Microsoft so you can play protected files, including secure music files from Walmart.com. This update takes about 15 seconds. The update is safe for your computer and no personally-identifying information about you is transmitted during the process.
For those who might miss the subtext in this warning, it’s saying that you need to install a Microsoft DRM component so that you can download an unencrypted MP3 file from the Wal-Mart music store.
Normally this is the point where I would bail out and cut my losses. However, I’m here to review the whole process so I grudgingly agree to install the download manager and security update.
While the updates are running I’m left to read Wal-Mart’s terms of service. I note the restrictions on how I’m allowed to use the MP3 file that I am (hopefully) about to download:
You may download music to a single computer. You may then transfer music files and backup license files to up to two (2) additional personal computers. You may play music an unlimited number of times on up to three (3) personal computers. You shall be entitled to 1) burn Products solely for personal, non-commercial use up to ten (10) times and 2) export Products solely to a portable device capable of playing Windows Media â„¢ Audio (“WMA”) files such as a WMA-compliant MP3 player an unlimited number of times.
No mention of MP3 files at all. Sort of makes you wonder how much time Wal-Mart spent on this launch. It’s starting to seem like they might have thrown this together late last week.
Finally the downloads are complete, I’ve agreed to the terms of service, and it’s finally time to . . . REBOOT!
Seriously, in any other situation this would be the point where I dropped out of the process and moved on to doing something more constructive with my life. But I was doing this for the ‘Loper, so I had to press on.
I reboot, and briefly forget what I’m doing sitting in front of a Windows machine. Then it comes to me: Oh yeah, I’m downloading a 94 cent MP3 file from Wal-Mart. Same thing I’ve been doing for the last two hours.
I start Internet Explorer, head back to the Wal-Mart Music Store — find the Elvis Costello song AGAIN! — add it to my cart, and start the checkout process.
That’s when I’m informed that I need to install another Windows Update. I choose to ignore this message. That turns out to be a good call on my part.
Finally, I’m asked to create a new account. I’m not crazy about handing over my payment information to Wal-Mart, but then it is for the ‘Loper (so I use Lopy’s credit card number).
During the account creation process I’m offered the opportunity to signup for a mind boggling number of Wal-Mart mailing lists. I make sure all of the boxes are unchecked, then I notice something strange. They want to know my ‘baby’s due date’! I’m not making this up. I couldn’t possibly make this up. Wal-Mart apparently has some sort of maternity club and they want me to join. Nearly three hours of torture and it comes to this — Wal-Mart asking for my baby’s due date.
Needless to say, I don’t dignify the question with an answer.
I finish creating my account and FINALLY I’m allowed to download my 94 cent MP3 file.
After a bit of searching I figure out what fold my trusty Wal-Mart Download Manager has put my new song in, then I drag it over to my Mac — where it plays in iTunes like any other MP3 file.
To recap, my experience downloading one unencrypted mp3 file from Wal-Mart involved two computers, three web browsers, two software updates (including installing support for Windows WMA protected music), and a reboot.
Needless to say, my Wal-Mart Music experience isn’t going to lead me to cancel my eMusic subscription anytime soon.
And if you really want that Peter Frampton song, I’m sure I can help you out. That is, if you don’t already own it.
You’re lucky that you didn’t actually download “Do You Feel Like We Do?” Who knows how long that song would have taken?
I went through part of this today myself, at the beginning very excited that I could actually purchase some music! I was not engaging in science, so I bailed rather than installing a “download manager” and gave WalMart a piece of my mind instead.
I found a way around the mess. If you go to http://musicdownloads.walmart.com/ which is an option presented in the “Unsupported Browser” message, you can purchase music without the intrusive checks. Once it’s purchased you go to a download section. Downloading all the files in one go requires their ‘manager’, but you can download files individually as bare mp3’s. Success! After a bunch of extra clicking, anyway. I bought an album and a few singles. The filenames are lousy and the tags leave something to be desired, but all in all it’s decent.
Thanks Terrance, that tip might be useful to someone.
I can’t help but thinking that a lot of the hassle might be avoided if the Wal-Mart web team actually spent 5 minutes thinking about their site. Clearly, the site should work on a Mac using Firefox. There’s no reason why a Mac user should get ever see a Windows OS compatibility error.
Then again, there’s no reason any user should ever be asked what the expected delivery date of their baby is. It’s hard to avoid the conclusion that Wal-Mart’s marketing department has run amok and Wal-Mart’s web team doesn’t know how to say NO.
Just between us, when is the baby due again?
There’s no reason why a Mac user should get ever see a Windows OS compatibility error.
Other than the fact that mac represents 6% of the computer market. If you want a computer that can do something other than edit video and music (which amazing eough pc’s can do too).
If you buy a expensive paper weight and then complain its a expensive paper weight….
Hey “Reality”, you seem to be living about ten years in the past.
There are plenty of reasons why someone would choose a Mac over a PC (security, usability, reliability, total cost of ownership, etc.), but those are beyond the scope of this post.
A Mac user shouldn’t see a Windows OS compatibility error on the Wal-Mart site because there is an alternate site that clearly works with Firefox (that’s a popular open source web browser, you may have heard of it). It would take a competent web developer less than five minutes to modify Wal-Mart’s browser/os detection code to recognize Firefox running on a Mac and offer Mac users the same alternative they offer to Windows users who are running Firefox.
As for Mac’s 6% market share, iTunes has approximately 80% market share in the digital music business. I don’t think a retailer like Wal-Mart can afford to exclude anyone from their store. At least not if they’re serious about competing with iTunes.
Well you know there’s a saying that goes you get what you pay for. In order to bring you music at discounted volume prices, costs for hiring developers actually capable of building such a web app correctly had to be overlooked.
Abe, you’re obviously right. I guess they’re spending all of their money developing the Wal-Mart Maternity Club.
This is a great piece…music lovers everywhere owe you one for taking one for the team like this.
80% market share in the digital music business
Which is still a very small market. Nothing compared to say pc market. I would like to see how many of those itune downloads are coming from pc’s. Reality is mac is 6% global market share is enough to make it a non factor in alot of things. Thus the chances of that web designer taking 5 more mins to do this or that for mac is less likely. To be fair though, they didn’t spend much time for the rest of the 94% either.
Wal-Mart isn’t exactly in growth mode at this point and most of their web offerings have been failures. 6% of the market may not mean much to you, but it matters to the bean counters.
By your logic Wal-Mart shouldn’t worry about supporting the 20% Firefox user base either.
Thanks Will, I just hope someday the team takes one for me.
By your logic Wal-Mart shouldn’t worry about supporting the 20% Firefox user base either.
Which seems to be the case.
No, actually they direct Windows Firefox users to an alternate site (as noted in the post). My point is that the same alternate site would work for Mac Firefox users as well. And it would take all of two minutes for them to modify the OS error they display to Mac users.
Terrance,
Your advice was spot-on. Wal-Mart wanted me to upgrade my media player, add DRM ActiveX etc. Your shortcut neatly sidestepped all that garbage. Thanks!
Prang.
Hey “Reality,”
Here’s what I don’t understand (unless you’re just a troll, of course): why is it a good business practice that a mass-market retailer selling a mass-market product such as music purposefully ignore 20% — or even 6% — of the audience?
If they were going after a niche audience with a niche product, then it would make sense.
Also, you seem to forget that while the Mac market share is very small, I think that it has been established that it is disproportionately full of early adopters and opinion leaders: the exact people that a smart retailer would want to make sure had a favorable initial experience.
Here’s an absolute real-world example where that 6% made a difference: the iPod, which, for nine months had no bundled Windows software.
And because of those glowing early reviews, the rest of the world wanted to get their hands on one. Apple made sure they eventually serviced 100% of the audience.
Which is why I don’t understand your contention that Wal-Mart shouldn’t even bother.
quote
You may download music to a single computer. You may then transfer music files and backup license files to up to two (2) additional personal computers. You may play music an unlimited number of times on up to three (3) personal computers. You shall be entitled to 1) burn Products solely for personal, non-commercial use up to ten (10) times and 2) export Products solely to a portable device capable of playing Windows Media â„¢ Audio (â€WMAâ€) files such as a WMA-compliant MP3 player an unlimited number of times.
quote
Am I the only one here that notice that this “DRM Free” music has conditions that appear almost similar to the DRM conditions of iTunes?
Redefining ‘DRM Free’?
Walmart’s site sucked before the MP3 offering. But, I hope they are successful. Competition, and support for DRM free music is important if you want it to stick around.
I’m a Windows and Linux user. I run Firefox except when a site requires IE. That’s why I use Windows – freedom to do whatever I need. I run Linux in a free VM (too bad Parallels isn’t free). But, you guys chose the Mac knowing that there are a lot of things you can’t do on it that Windows users can (web sites, a lot of software, etc). It’s just a price you have to pay.
Now, I’m sure if you were really interested, you could figure out that you needed an up-to-date IE and Media Player as well as Walmart’s software in less than 3 hours. There are at least a few requirements with most software download sites, including iTunes.
By the way, it looks like Jim’s feeling pretty good about himself — as one of the “early adopters and opinion leaders. That’s a very impressive self-assessment.
Hey Dwn2Earth:
Jim always feels good about himself. Eventually you just get used to it.
Let me see if I understand you. I picked Mac, so I should expect that there are certain websites that will not work for me. What sort of websites would those be? Websites that sell the platform neutral music in an mp3 format? How is that Windows specific?
A few years ago I used to hear people claim they couldn’t use Firefox because certain website didn’t work properly. It’s been quite a while since I’ve heard anyone make that claim. Mainly because web developers have realized that it’s not that difficult to support non-MS browsers and operating systems, and the additional effort is well worth it in terms of overall total user satisfaction.
I’ll say it again, since you seem to have missed it in the comments. A website that works with Firefox on Windows also works also works with Firefox on Mac. A competent web developer can easily make the changes necessary to accommodate Mac users in less than five minutes.
This isn’t so much about supporting the MP3 format as it is about supporting open formats in general. Wal-Mart clearly doesn’t get it.
Kirk, you’re right about that. Walmart doesn’t get open formats, and I wish they did too. Here’s my guess as to why it’s this way.
I’m sure they started down the IE path because of DRM requirements. From my understanding, Windows Media player has built in DRM. And since Windows Media player only works in Windows, there was a logical connection to IE as well. They aren’t putting a whole ton of money in their online music sales, so a canned approach probably seemed logical.
Just a guess. Maybe if enough Mac, Linux and Firefox users would make polite requests, they’d see a big music market. Mac users certainly are certainly (usually) music lovers.
At the risk of being offensive, Jim’s comments seemed a bit like the smug attitude of the original Mac/PC guy commercials. At least 96% of othe world were sick of that attitude from some Mac users.
I meant 94%. Darned PC can’t even calculate right 100%-6%. 🙂
Jim, sorry about the possibly offensive comment. Being up too late got to my head. I know the Mac commercials are all in jest, and when I’ve had enough sleep I can take a joke.
Yeah, I think you’re right about what’s happened with Wal-Mart’s music store. Although, based on the way the PC Firefox message was worded, it sounds like they did their last redesign/upgrade relatively recently and made the decision to lock into ActiveX then. By my estimation that would be at least a couple years after most major sites came to their senses and realized that tying their web content to Internet Explorer isn’t a good idea.
Any way you look at this, it’s pretty clear that Wal-Mart is challenged by the web.
As for Jim, the funny thing is, he’s the only PC user on the Loper team (if you don’t count me and my Dell that just sits around waiting to login to the Wal-Mart music store).
Dwn2Earth,
As Kirk pointed out, I’m pretty much the only ‘Loper who uses Windows, and since my mental model of how to navigate around a computer pretty much begins and ends with Windows Explorer, I suspect it will ever be thus.
I don’t think that either one is “better,” I just know what works for me.
So no offense taken either way, but I think you may have misinterpreted my comment: I said that ignoring the audience of early adopters and opinion leaders was perilous, but I never said that I was part of that niche, or that it was a good thing. I was just pointing out that I believe it exists.
Jim, sorry about the possibly offensive comment. Being up too late got to my head. I know the Mac commercials are all in jest, and when I’ve had enough sleep I can take a joke.
I’m not sure how they have those ads on tv. I guess its acceptable to lie and false advertise if your “APPLE”.
“Also, you seem to forget that while the Mac market share is very small, I think that it has been established that it is disproportionately full of early adopters and opinion leaders: the exact people that a smart retailer would want to make sure had a favorable initial experience”
Early addopters that have no idea about electronics is what i”m assuming you mean by opinion leaders.
Apple has failed so many times with its product and had to bailed out of money troubles by microsoft (google it if you don’t believe me). Truely this must be a great company all “SMART REATIALERS’ (which i assume means that if they are smart they wouldn’t sell apple products). Then apple has one very small success (ipod/itunes) which compared to most other electronics that hit it big has only sold a small number off. In a new type of market that in reality still isn’t taking off (though if you watch the main stream news you would think it was the next “IT”) and really is just the a dumbed down mp3 because as we all know most mac owners are not the best informed technical types around.
I’m looking at Apples $119 Billion (with a “B) market cap and I find it hard to believe that they managed to attain that by simply fooling a small number of Mac zealots who don’t know anything about technology. But, your name is “Reality” so you must know what you’re talking about .
Thanks for straightening this all out for us.
“$119 Billion (with a “B) market cap ”
Interesting, maybe you should go google when Microsoft bailed out “Apple” from going under in the 90’s.
Here i will save you the trouble.
“Microsoft (MSFT) is lending Apple Computer (AAPL) an unexpected and somewhat controversial helping hand.
Microsoft chairman Bill Gates said today that the software giant will invest $150 million in Apple and will develop and ship future versions of its Microsoft Office, Internet Explorer, and development tools for the Macintosh. ”
Ya what a awesome company. They did so awesome (as in failing horrible” that microsoft bailed them out so “windows” would have some competiton. In hopes they wouldn;t be accused of having a Os monopoly with the demise of the apples OS and computers. Which almost happened. Amazing enough soon after here comes Imac to save the day.
Lets not forget apples overpiced computers that couldn’t even do the 1/4 of what P’c could do. You could get a pc that was had more memory, video, and proccesing power for half the price. Not to forget that you could choose a whole array of options of parts for pc where apple chose to go the propritory route.
Apples hay-day was in the 80’s and they drop the ball then, and the still drop the ball nowadays. Without there marketing department and consumer base that in known to be in the tech would as “less than computer salvy people” apple wouldn’t hold the very little share of the market they have now. A whole whopping 6%. Lets not forget being bailed out by there main competition.
For someone named “reality” you couldn’t be less coherent or more off topic.
I remember the Microsoft investment well. Apple was in bad shape A DECADE AGO. A lot has changed since then. For one, Microsoft is no longer manufacturing Internet Explorer for the Mac (and yet, all of us technological illiterate Mac users still manage to use the Internet somehow — imagine that).
Your perception of Apple is clearly frozen in the late-90’s. You should either make an effort to learn more about the present, or move on to something else.
“Microsoft is no longer manufacturing Internet Explorer for the Mac ”
Ya thats true. They Microsoft has there entire OS for the mac now.
“Apple was in bad shape A DECADE AGO.”
Yes thats true, and well if they didn’t have the ipod/itunes success now they would be in troulbe again as a company. I mean you haft to question why a company would hype a product Iphone (Which i will admit is a pretty nice phone/Music player) and then lock it on the worst telco network. Which is also one of the worst telco at the moment. That was a brilliant move.
Apple marketing department is truly one of the best. One of the few thing i will give props to apple for. They make a turd look nice and shiny.
But the point is that Apple DID have the iPod/iTunes success and therefore *aren’t* in trouble as a company.
That’s the current, um, er, reality of Apple’s situation.
I also believe that they are trying to reinvent themselves as a smart gadget company, using their OS as a basis for their products.
As I wrote before, I probably will continue to buy Windowns laptops and desktops, because that’s that’s how I understand computers (for now), but I love that the things that frustrate me about Macs are perfect for the UIs of things like the iPod and iPhone.
Finally, having a good marketing department is essential to doing business in this day and age, so I don’t think that’s a much of a dis.
“I also believe that they are trying to reinvent themselves as a smart gadget company, using their OS as a basis for their products”
And that OS is entirely different from the OS that Apple was selling 10 years ago. OSX has been largely responsible for turning the Mac into the computer of choice for more techy users (yeah, I can hear “reality” hackling now, but chances are he hasn’t been to SxSW or any of the other non-MS tech events where Mac laptops dominate).
As long as we’re sooooo far off topic here, I’m curious about this statement Jim:
“my mental model of how to navigate around a computer pretty much begins and ends with Windows Explorer”.
Do you mean Windows Explorer literally, or the Windows file system?
Windows Explorer.
For me, it’s the map the most closely represents the territory of my network, and the tool that makes it the easiest for me to work with the files therein.
For me.
And even it has problems.
Thanks to Terence, I’ve just been using the walmart site on Linux, I had already tried to use their site and given up on the idiot message told me I needed to “upgrade my version of windows” 🙂
I could happily spend a lot of money on this site – if it wasn’t for 99% of their downloads being wma. I came to download mp3s, not a microsoft junk format. When I say 99% I only checked – interpol, white stripes, elton john, caribou, tears for fears, the editors. None had more than one single in mp3 format. Shame.
“Reality” – the reason walmart should support mac, linux, solaris 10, bsd, windows ME, the amiga, etc. is because it is a website. The web is a protocol for communication between communication – it MUST NOT specify what OS to use. Websites shouldn’t tell me what kind of browser, or what operating system to use. They should just work. There’s no reason for walmart’s strange message, and there’s no reason something as simple as an mp3 download store should be checking what browser or OS I use.
And if you really hate Apple so much, buy their stock. If it goes up you get compensated for your discomfort. If it goes down, you’re laughing anyway. Just my 2c.
I’m late to the party in every sense of the word … I read this after finally buying my very first MP3 player. I’m so glad I did! It sounds like you saved me hours….
Can you recommend a platform-independent source where I can purchase MP3 tracks that don’t expire, without locking into anyone’s subscription service?!
Thanks for your time and research!
Holly,
Your best bets are emusic.com, or Amazon.com
eMusic is a subscription service that offers DRM-free music for as low as .25 per track (based on the monthly subscription fee). Amazon just recently started selling DRM-free MP3 files, most at around .88 cents.
eMusic specializes in independent artists, while Amazon has titles from several major labels.
Dont forget that WalMart censors their music to fuel the christian propaganda machine. Terrible. I can’t believe that they can get away with this malarky.
Dont forget that WalMart censors their music to fuel the christian propaganda machine. Terrible. I can’t believe that they can get away with this malarky.
The reason I would buy music on Walmart is because it is censored and I’m sure others feel the same way. It has nothing to do with the “christian propaganda machine”, although I did get a good laugh at your post.
Yeah i finally figured out my problem, wal-mart. I was using firefox myself.
Thanks
ok so… i dont know if this has anything to do with what you’re talking about… but i bought a fifteen songs for fourteen dollars gift card from walmart and i selected all the songs to download.. and it only downloaded eight!!! and the worst part is… it says that all fifteen are downloaded and i’m a little upset. so… if ANYONE has any ideas for how to solve this problem… that’d be great 🙂
Just had my first and last experience with Wal-mart’s online music store. I bought two tracks and when I tried to download them (individually as it stated I must do), both failed. I put in my complaint to get a refund or the songs…either will be fine.
Like the OP, I don’t use Windows, but Linux. I prefer Linux over all…but would most certainly take a Mac over M$ any day. I’ve used several different distros of Linux over the years…but currently use Ubuntu. I can do everything I need to do on a daily basis without any problems.
It seems that if “reality” wants to be real technical, he’d get a linux box and dump the M$ BS. Learn to use a real computer and learn something “about” your computer at the same time. Winders is a consumer toy, not a real OS. IE is crap and should be boycotted by all. The net should work the same on ALL platforms.
I hat trying to download w/ a walmart gift card it SUCKS