Though the iTunes Music Store charges 99 cents per song while other (often illegal) sites still offer “free” songs, Apple’s service will change the music business, according to Business 2.0.
The disadvantage of the free sites is that they load spyware and transfer viruses onto your hard drive, plus their regular customers could be served with piracy lawsuits, the article notes. And the Apple service is “easy to use, completely legal and — frankly — dangerously addictive,” according to Business 2.0.
The downsides of the iTunes Music Store is the music selection is lacking (“Rolling Stones, Beatles and Madonna songs are obvious omissions”) and the service is Mac only, the article says. Apple has said that the Windows version of the online music store would arrive before the end of the year.