According to Nielsen SoundScan, the Journey track “Don’t Stop Believin’”, originally released in 1981, has become the first catalog digital download in history to reach the 2 million sold milestone.
“Believin’” is at 2.03 million downloads since it reached legal download services in April 2003 and has seen increased popularity through famous placements such as during the final scene of “The Sopranos” and in episodes of “Family Guy” and “Laguna Beach.” The recent addition of a new lead singer and a tour has also helped bring the song back into the spotlight.
“They are one of the most important artists we have,” Sony Music Entertainment Commercial Music Group president John Ingrassia says. “We’re constantly working with the band and our team to create new products or highlight the catalog.”
Ingrassia added, “We always do search engine marketing and promotion through the Web sites of TV shows or other partners, but now we can go to DSPs (digital service providers) and say, ‘We can do a lot more with this if you’ll work with us.’”
Well done Journey.
Result for: sopranos
Although it has said for years that all digital downloads should have standard pricing, it seems Apple will finally acknowledge that not all TV shows are equal or will sell for the same price.
According to the NYTimes, the company will be selling some HBO shows on its iTunes platform for over its standard $1.99 price. The new deal may lead other premium media companies to ask for price changes for their digital content.
The deal is not official yet but could be announced as early as tomorrow, says a person close to the negotiations. The same person added that over time the complete series’ “Sex and the City” and the “The Sopranos” will be added to the iTunes platform.
Representatives from both Apple and HBO declined to comment on the matter.
The HBO deal will also differ from Apple’s current model with other content owners. Instead of having the episode hit iTunes the day after it airs, HBO episodes will be added to iTunes at the same time the retail DVDs of the seasons are released.
Some analysts feel Apple could simply be making an exception for HBO but if it isn’t then the pricing model could come under scrutiny by other media companies when their contracts with Apple come up for renewal.
“The big question is, will this start to trickle over to other areas of content?,” asks Russ Crupnick, a senior industry analyst for the NPD Group. “It could potentially have a huge impact on the music side.”
Result for: sopranos
Apple has announced that it will be expanding on its new variable pricing policy for TV shows on iTunes in the UK.
The UK iTunes platform has added a new set of Sony Pictures label TV shows including episodes of “Damages”, “NewsRadio”, “The Larry Sanders Show”, “Spiderman” and “Jackie Chan Adventures.” The pricing model for the episodes are staggered however, with NewsRadio, Spiderman and Jackie Chan being priced at £1.19, Larry Sanders at £1.49, and Damages at £1.89.
The trend of variable pricing began in the US when HBO stuck a deal with Apple to allow episodes of “Rome”, “Deadwood” and “The Sopranos” to sell at different prices than other current shows. Those HBO shows for example, even sell for more than other HBO shows like “Flight of the Conchords.”
NBC Universal also offers variable priced episodes on the UK iTunes, despite its now infamous fight with Apple over pricing in the US.
