Christian Music Downloads -- Not for Everyone
Bryan over at Arguing With Signposts is exercised over Lifeway's new music download service that doesn't work for Macs. He argues that not only is it unfair, but it's downright dishonest, because the Lifeway site uses language in its promotional materials that might lead one to believe that the service works for everyone. Only when you get to the guts of the service do you find the caveats (no *nix users need apply either).
I have a hard time getting as twisted off as Bryan, although I, too, am excluded from this service. For one thing, I don't understand why LifeWay, whose budget is strapped nowadays anyway, wants to venture off into something that doesn't seem to fit with its core competencies, most of which relate to Christian publications.
In any event, this unfortunately makes that organization look like another poorly-conceived and executed Christian knock-off of a successful secular model. We already have plenty of those burdens to bear ("Left Behind," anyone?). I wish, for once, that a Christian recasting of a venture could actually exceed the original in terms of quality and service.
After all, would Jesus have turned away Mac users if He'd been programming a service like this? (Yeah...a smilie goes with that statement.)
Update (same day): Coincidentally, today's Wall Street Journal has an article about the proliferation of competitors in the music download business, and cites LifeWay as but one of the new entrants. The article also has this to say about the profitability of this business:
"The margins are very low and quickly become negative," says Mr. Ryan of RealNetworks.
...
"We'd like to break even or make a little bit of money, but it's not a money maker," Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs recently told investors in regard to iTunes. He adds that he's bewildered by other music download sites that don't have a sideline business selling hardware. "That's why I look at Roxio with Napster and Musicmatch -- these guys can never make money."
Perhaps LifeWay knows something the others don't.
I found a real treasure trove of old but unplayed out-of-print Christian music records, cassettes and CDs, including many of the great touring bangs and artists of the 1980's, at the http://www.torontochristianbooks.com site.
There's a lot of rare and hard-to-find titles there. You'll see them on:
http://www.torontochristianbooks.com/cassette.htm
http://www.torontochristianbooks.com/records.htm
http://www.torontochristianbooks.com/demorecs.htm
http://www.torontochristianbooks.com/oldcds.htm
About the publisher
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Is Lifeway really hurting? I always understood it to be a separate entity that actually gave money back to the Southern Baptist Convention. It's news to me that it's financially strapped. I know the SBC itself is playing the poor beggar recently, but I thought Lifeway was doing fine.
Posted by: bryan at November 19, 2003 02:56 PM