Just weeks after Kid Rock finally made his iTunes debut, Apple has won over another high-profile holdout from its music downloads store: AC/DC.
The news is hard to miss: a prominent banner on the iTunes homepage advertising the fact that the rock band’s catalogue is now available to buy on iTunes.
25 albums are available to buy, with £7.99 the standard price. And yes, you CAN buy individual songs, despite the fact that such cherry-picking was one of the band’s beefs with iTunes in the past.
“I know the Beatles have changed but we’re going to carry on like that,” guitarist Angus Young told Sky News in May 2011, after the Beatles had ended their own iTunes holdout. “For us it’s the best way. We are a band who started off with albums and that’s how we’ve always been.”
Back in October 2008, the band were even more hardline. “Maybe I’m just being old-fashioned, but this iTunes, God bless ’em, it’s going to kill music if they’re not careful,” singer Brian Johnson told Reuters.
“It’s a…monster, this thing. It just worries me. And I’m sure they’re just doing it all in the interest of making as much…cash as possible. Let’s put it this way, it’s certainly not for the…love, let’s get that out of the way, right away.”
As with Kid Rock, something has changed AC/DC’s mind since then, ensuring they can make as much… cash as possible from digital sales of their back catalogue. Apple is selling iTunes LP versions of the albums – iTunes LP lives! – as well as two ‘digital box-sets’ – a £79.99 Studio Collection and a £99.99 Complete Collection. Oh, and ringtones.
At the time of writing, AC/DC’s collection isn’t available on streaming services like Spotify and Deezer, although it’s unclear whether this means it’s an iTunes exclusive. We’re following up on that.
This isn’t the first digital deal for AC/DC though. Back in August 2007, the band struck a one-year deal with US mobile operator Verizon Wireless for exclusive rights to sell full-album downloads.
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RT @MusicAlly: AC/DC end their iTunes holdout: http://t.co/WKxn7TVD tip @techmeme
RT @MusicAlly: AC/DC end their iTunes holdout: http://t.co/WKxn7TVD tip @techmeme
RT @MusicAlly: AC/DC end their iTunes holdout: http://t.co/WKxn7TVD tip @techmeme
RT @MusicAlly: AC/DC end their iTunes holdout: http://t.co/WKxn7TVD tip @techmeme
RT @MusicAlly: AC/DC end their iTunes holdout: http://t.co/WKxn7TVD tip @techmeme
RT @MusicAlly: AC/DC end their iTunes holdout: http://t.co/WKxn7TVD tip @techmeme
RT @MusicAlly: AC/DC end their iTunes holdout: http://t.co/WKxn7TVD tip @techmeme
RT @MusicAlly: AC/DC end their iTunes holdout: http://t.co/WKxn7TVD tip @techmeme
RT @MusicAlly: AC/DC end their iTunes holdout: http://t.co/WKxn7TVD tip @techmeme