I'm sure Apple would like it otherwise, but they're still doing well to get anything for music with the "Napsterization" of morals we've seen.

The razor-blade concept is alive and well, though, in printers and cartridges.

The problem is that Apple doesn't sell the blades, the four members of RIAA have them by the short and curlys, and take almost all of the pie, while at the same time trying to obstruct sales of music online. If it was a free and open market, instead of a rigged maphiya, then the blades analogy would work.

As it stands, the blades are only available from US Steel, who restrict the sale of steel to Gillette.

Apple has more than 70 percent of legal downloads of music. The current arrangement with the music providers will not last. The pump has been more than primed. Apple is now in a position to demand a greater share of the pie. Furthermore, an argument can be made that the wiser course for music providers is to lower prices, particularly on singles, and sell a greater volume. Consider the Roots' hot single "Don't Say Nuthin," for example. Just about every Hip Hop fan in America wants it. Figuring out the mumbled lyrics has become an online parlor game. Drop the price from 99 cents to 49 cents and the sells will make the overloaded pipe for Bill Clinton's book look like child's play. The CD is discounted to $9.99 at Best Buy (where I bought mine). Drop it to $4.99 at the iTunes Music Store and it will fly off the virtual shelf.

Good post Doc. Apple has certainly never been one to follow the crowd. It's all about the hardware. Ironically though, it is their software that really lifts them above the crowd.

Hmmm.....the average connsumer can custom burn a CD, complete with jewel case & artwork for about a buck or two. This for all practical purposes is an example of the cottage industry level of manufacturing. A large label should be able to mass produce them for a fraction of that cost, and any number of websites willl tell you that includes the initial outlay for artwork & recording. Sure, they should make a profit, but how much? The laws of economics say the answer to that question is whatever the market will bear. In any case, they seem to be able to sell them for about $10 - $20.

Obviously, people will pay good money for the music they want, so if the industry is concerned about levels of sales, file swapping, formatting, CD burning, or, well, anything really, but in particular, loss of profit, maybe the first thing they need to realize is that maybe people don't want to spend their cash on the music that's out there right now. Some R&D into A&R would help thie biz, and I don't mean coming up with ten clone bands to ride the coattails of the current flavor of the month.

I know this iPod stuff is all the rage, but I think people like to collect an actual, physical object, like a CD, or a baseball card. Bringing prices of CD's down would help, but having a wider range of artists availble to the mainstream public would help, too. Maybe Chicken-With-Its-Head-Cut-Off would sell as much as Britney if it was on a major label.