U2Traveller said:
Why do they need more? I've always wondered what drives a person who already has over a 100 million to want to make more. Greed? Retire already and let somebody else make it.
I'm really confused by your stance Traveller. You say it's all about money, marketing, and publicity. You make it sound as if U2 shouldn't do marketing and publicity???? They have done this their entire career. Print ads, tv appearances, videos, distributing to and lobbying radio stations, tours, movies (R&H), posters, t-shirts, buttons, keyrings, calendars, condoms, the list goes on and on and on.....
They are letting Apple use video of them singing a song. This is promoting their song and where to get it (iTunes). They are breaking into the online market like noone else. The music industry has been hit hard and while most other artists are back on their heels, U2 is moving forward into new territories. They were one of, if not THE first, to put their weight behind the original launching of iTunes. They like to push the technological boundaries, as we've seen with their innovative tours, and i see this as an extention of that.
I don't know how long you've been a U2 fan, but if you have been for a while, then you know that U2 has always wanted to and proclaimed that they want to be the biggest and best band out there. They have used marketing and promotion to do this for their whole career and this is just one part of a huge promotion for this album, like every other album before it.
And as for your "purist" comment. If you were truly a purist you would be listening to vinyl, but other than that, you know that you can download files in a lossless format which is the EXACT same quality as a CD, no data loss, and takes up half the storage space. It's still quite a bit bigger than an MP3, but it is lossless.
The iPod really is an awesome thing. I have 3600 or so songs on mine and can take it anywhere, play it at school, in the car, or work or home through my stereo. The quality of the files is your choice to make.
I am an assistant audio engineer, which means it's my job to hear quality differences in audio, and I have an extremely hard time hearing the difference between CD quality and an MP3 at 192kbps, let alone at 256 or 320. You should check it out.