BuyMusic.com shows promise by providing downloadable Windows Media Audio (WMA) files to the public without requiring costly monthly fees or subscriptions. Unfortunately; like most Pay-to-Play services today- they have to provide some type of content protection (DRM) to keep their downloads legal and keep the RIAA off their back.
With this service; you pay to download WMA files to your computer which can
then be played or burned to AudioCD using Microsoft's Media player. Download costs start from $0.99 per track; but most recent tracks
seems to cost $1.14. Update: Buy.com
has purchased Buymusic.com and now appears to offer tracks starting at $0.79 per
track.You can pick and choose which tracks you want from a CD or
if you desire purchase the entire CDs for around $13. BuyMusic.com does not
appear to have a huge selection of music; but since they do not charge a monthly
service fee this can be forgiven. This site does not need a free trial and provides
30 second samples of the tracks available for purchase.
Hint: Unprotect BuyMusic.com's WMA files using this Tutorial.
BuyMusic.com gets 5 out of 10 stars for their current offering.
Pros:
- No monthly service contract.
- Files exist on your computer; not their server.
- WMA files which can be burned onto AudioCD.
Cons:
- Limited Selection of Music.
per track costs seem a little higher that other services.- Each file's License can vary; making it difficult to remember how you can use the file.
| Service | BuyMusic.com | ||||||||||
| URL | BuyMusic.com | ||||||||||
| Criteria | Sub Criteria | Specifics | Score | Total Possible score | Notes: | ||||||
| Overall | 5.15 | out of 10 | |||||||||
| Compatibility | 1.75 | out of 3 | |||||||||
| Format | 0.55 | out of 1 | |||||||||
| Open / Standard Format | 0.3 | 0.5 | Copy Protected WMA files | ||||||||
| Digital Rights | 0.25 | 0.5 | Ideally, no copy protection.. But most tracks seem to have fair use. | ||||||||
| Application Compatibility | 0.5 | out of 1 | |||||||||
| Default format supported by CDMaster32 | 0 | 1 | WMA isn't supported in CDMaster32 due to Licensing restrictions. | ||||||||
| Audio CD Format | 0.5 | 0.5 | |||||||||
| Portability | 0.7 | out of 1 | |||||||||
| Burn AudioCDs | 0.5 | 0.5 | Supported if allowed via DRM | ||||||||
| Portable non-CD Devices | 0.2 | 0.25 | Some supported via Media Player | ||||||||
| MP3CD Format | 0 | 0.25 | |||||||||
| Costs | 2.05 | out of 4 | |||||||||
| Service Fee | 1 | out of 1 | |||||||||
| Up-front Costs or Per Month | 0.5 | 0.5 | |||||||||
| None | 0.5 | 0.5 | |||||||||
| <$10 | 0.33 | ||||||||||
| $10-$20 | 0.25 | ||||||||||
| >$20 | 0 | ||||||||||
| Number of Plans | 0.25 | 0.25 | |||||||||
| N/A | 0.25 | 0.25 | |||||||||
| >2 | 0.2 | ||||||||||
| 2 | 0.15 | ||||||||||
| 1 | 0.05 | ||||||||||
| Type of Plan | 0.25 | 0.25 | |||||||||
| Unlimited | 0.25 | ||||||||||
| Per Month | 0.1 | ||||||||||
| Per Year | 0.1 | ||||||||||
| Downloads | 0.55 | out of 1 | |||||||||
| Cost To Download | 0.1 | 0.5 | |||||||||
| Unlimited | 0.5 | ||||||||||
| limited | 0.25 | ||||||||||
| pay per | 0.1 | 0.1 | |||||||||
| none / on server | 0 | ||||||||||
| Available Players for Downloads | 0.25 | 0.5 | |||||||||
| Supplied / Proprietary | 0 | ||||||||||
| Standard | 0.25 | 0.25 | |||||||||
| Any | 0.5 | ||||||||||
| Burn | Cost To Burn Audio CDs | 0.5 | 1 | ||||||||
| N/A | 0 | ||||||||||
| 0-$0.50 | 1 | ||||||||||
| $0.51-$0.99 | 0.5 | 0.5 | |||||||||
| >$0.99 | 0.25 | ||||||||||
| Free Trial | 0.25 | 1 | |||||||||
| No Trial | 0 | ||||||||||
| Sample Access | 0.25 | 0.25 | 30second samples available for free | ||||||||
| Full Access < 7days | 0.5 | ||||||||||
| Full Access > 7days | 1 | ||||||||||
| Availability | 1.345 | out of 3 | |||||||||
| Selection | 0.65 | out of 1.5 | |||||||||
| Number of Labels | 0.15 | 0.5 | |||||||||
| All | 0.5 | ||||||||||
| 5 major | 0.15 | 0.25 | Most labels appear to be represented… but not entire catalog from label. | ||||||||
| Single | 0 | ||||||||||
| Selection of Songs | 0.5 | 1 | |||||||||
| All | 1 | ||||||||||
| Most Popular | 0.75 | ||||||||||
| Some Popular | 0.5 | 0.5 | |||||||||
| Mostly Rare | 0.25 | ||||||||||
| File Rights | 0.12 | 0.5 | |||||||||
| All Files have Same rights | 0.5 | ||||||||||
| Varies by Plan | 0.25 | ||||||||||
| Varies per Track | 0.12 | 0.12 | |||||||||
| Listen only / No rights | 0 | ||||||||||
| Song Database | 0.175 | out of 0.5 | |||||||||
| Free / Open Search | 0.1 | 0.1 | User Can search for song using standard WWW browser | ||||||||
| Detailed Artist / Song Info | 0.075 | 0.1 | |||||||||
| Cross Reference Similar Artist / Music | 0 | 0.2 | |||||||||
| Exportable data | 0 | 0.1 | |||||||||
| Interface | 0.4 | out of 0.5 | |||||||||
| Web Based Browsing | 0.3 | 0.5 | Web Based browsing needs work | ||||||||
| Proprietary Application | 0.1 | 0.25 | Looses points for WMA files / DRM. | ||||||||
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