Timothy Huber
05-22-2009, 10:30 PM
<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-12519_7-10243101-49.html' target='_blank'>http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-12519_...0243101-49.html</a><br /><br /></div><p><em>"On the evening of May 18, the online music service Napster (a subsidiary of Best Buy) intends to drop the price of its least-expensive subscription music plan from $12.95 down to $5. The low-cost subscription plan allows users unrestricted streaming from a catalog of over 7 million songs, as well as a new offering of five DRM-free MP3 downloads per month. Although Napster's music service has an international reach, the new subscription plan is currently available only to U.S. customers."</em></p><p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/dht/auto/1243025859.usr147.jpg" /></p><p>If you can live without taking subscription music with you, Napster has a pretty good deal. For $5 per month you get five MP3 download and have unlimited on-demand streaming. The breakeven calculation is pretty simple: if you normally buy five $0.99 tracks per month, you can basically get unlimited on-demand streaming for a nickel! That's <em>streaming</em>, mind you, which means you can only play on an Internet-connected computer. But if you don't mind that limitation, it's hard to find a downside.</p><p>I've been a subscription user for several years, including, at various times, Rhapsody, Yahoo Music, and, currently, Zune Marketplace. Even though I still buy tracks to keep permanently, I wouldn't ever want to give up a subscription service because I can try out just about any music I want with no fear of buyer's remorse. And between my wife, two kids, and me we enough musical diversity to easily cover the $15/month cost. </p>