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Op Zop Too Wah is a typically idiosyncratic and entertaining effort from Adrian Belew, demonstrating equal amounts of unparalleled guitar virtuosity and maddeningly pedestrian songcraft. Occasionally, Belew hits upon thrilling compromises between the two extremes, but just as often he meanders, missing his targets as frequently as he hits them. Nevertheless, the mediocre material is redeemed for his dedicated fans by his stellar guitar skills and the wide variety of sounds he can coax out of his instrument. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Report: Mobile music too costly
Customers aren't ready to pony up as much as $1.50 more than the 99-cent standard for downloads to their mobile phone, survey finds.
When wireless giant Sprint launched its music store last year and Verizon followed with its own in January, one big question emerged: Are customers willing to pony up between $1.00 and $1.50 more than the 99-cent standard to download a song to their mobile phone?
Verizon's V Cast Music.
A new report from market research firm Strategy Analytics says no.
The report found that the major mobile music services are overpriced by up to 85 percent, and that customers simply aren't willing to pay that high a premium for music through their wireless providers when they can get them for 99 cents elsewhere, like Apple's popular iTunes Music Store. The firm conducted a survey of mobile phone users to reach its conclusion.
"Our research suggests that users are willing to pay a premium of around 35 percent for the convenience of downloading tracks to both their wireless devices and PCs--subject to reliable network performance," Strategy Analytics' Kevin Dolan said in a statement. "In our view, the current 100 to 150 percent premiums charged by the main operators make adoption of these services highly unlikely."
The Sprint Music Store came out of the box charging $2.50 per song, for which customers would get a lo-fi file to their phone and larger file to their PC. Verizon launched its V Cast Music store with $1.99 downloads and the same "dual delivery" method.
Since their respective launches, Verizon has kept its customer data to itself while Sprint touted its passing of the two million download mark last month.
Strategy Analytics' report indicated that Sprint's store outscored Verizon's V Cast "by a massive 21 percent, beating V Cast for both 'perceived network performance' and 'ease-of-use.'"
"Strategy Analytics has identified significant levels of consumer interest in mobile music services, and the current services--especially Sprint Music Store--meet or exceed user expectations in terms of performance and convenience," Strategy Analytics wireless analyst Paul Brown said in a statement. "However, price remains a considerable barrier to acceptance."
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