HMV hopes to be a "catalyst" to encourage more downloading
|
Two of the UK's biggest High Street music stores are set to launch download services - a move that could spark a price war.
Virgin launches its service on Friday 2 September with HMV launching its rival HMV Digital service three days later.
Both groups plan to make a "jukebox" available to users' allowing them to access millions of songs online.
But, iPod users could be disappointed as the service will not be compatible with the software the devices use.
HMV and Virgin hope that the new services will tempt older music lovers away from CDs and into the digital age of downloading.
Virgin will be first out of the gates with 1.2 million tracks available for a monthly subscription fee of £9.99.
A "premium" service is available for a higher price which will allow users to pick up an unlimited number of tunes for a month.
The only snag is, subscribers will effectively be renting the music as it will be erased when the subscription runs out - even if it is moved onto an mp3 player.
If people want to hang onto a track for good they will have to pay 79p.
Going head-to-head with Virgin will be HMV Digital which will have around 1.3 million tracks will be available to download from HMV's website for a monthly fee.
Most tracks will cost around 79p while albums will be priced at around £7.99 - but HMV says its built in the option for record labels to charge less for tracks .
"I think in time the public will realise that there is a vast choice available to them," HMV spokesman Gennaro Castaldo said.
"The iPod has been so successful because it is a fashion item as much as anything else, but fashions tend to change in time."
Possibly to underline the inter-generational appeal of downloading, HMV will be using old rockers The Who for the service's opening fanfare.
Unsurprisingly, they'll be belting out My Generation.
HMV's Mr Castaldo said the move was the firm's way to allow people access to a new format for music.
"Since we opened in 1921 we've sold every type of format, now we're providing another way people may want to buy," he told BBC News.
"There's a growing interest in technology and we think we've got the timing just right as downloading could potentially go mainstream."
However, many commentators claim that the two stores have taken their time to climb aboard the digital bandwagon.
By July legal downloads for the year had topped the 10 million mark, more than double the figure for the whole of last year, according to figures from the BPI.
In the UK downloads make up just 2% of music sales - for the worldwide market the figure is 5% - but such is their popularity last year Napster and Virgin Radio began an official downloading chart.
In April this year, downloads of singles were included in the official UK charts for the first time.
Retailer HMV will teach customers how to download music, to try to persuade a wider range of people to download as it enters the digital music market.
The high street chain will install computers in 200 stores and launch its own download service in September.
HMV said it aimed to "demystify" downloading for "women, older people and music fans in general".
Earlier this year the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) estimated that 96% of downloaders were male.
'Less intimidating'
"Record stores have generally been a bit of a male preserve," an HMV spokesman said.
"When more women are comfortable with downloading they may find it less intimidating to do that on their own computers, rather than go into a record store."
HMV will create "digital areas" in its stores, where staff will help customers to download music and digital music players will be sold.
It spokesman said HMV's download service would sell millions of songs at a similar price to Apple's rival online store iTunes.
 |
A lot of people still have not really picked up on downloading and do not necessarily understand it
|
HMV's entry into the download market follows a surge in legal downloading, with downloads often less expensive than traditional compact disc, vinyl or cassette music formats.
The number of legal downloads tripled to 180 million worldwide in the first half of 2005, according to the International Federation of Phonographic Industries (IFPI).
However, downloads still only account for 1.5% of the overall music sales in the UK, HMV's spokesman said.
"A lot of people still have not really picked up on downloading and do not necessarily understand it," he said.
"We hope that HMV's entry into the market will be the catalyst to move downloading into the mainstream."