iTunes sales of Beatles albums top 450,000 in first week

Posted:
in iPod + iTunes + AppleTV edited January 2014
A week after adding the Beatles to iTunes, Apple has sold 450,000 albums and 2 million songs.



Apple announced exclusive access to digital sales of the Beatle's music last week, including a digital box set that includes 13 studio albums, a two-volume ?Past Masters? compilation and the concert film ?Live at the Washington Coliseum, 1964.?



According to a report by Billboard, Apple sold 119,000 albums in the US, including 13,000 digital box sales (which count as a single album in the US figures; the global sales numbers appear to count each box set component as an individual album sale).



The Beatles' best selling album on iTunes in the US was 1969's "Abbey Road," while the top selling song was that album's track, "Here Comes the Sun."



The report compared the Beatles' sales favorably against first-week digital track sales for superstar acts, which "this year typically ranged from 100,000 to 300,000 per title, while digital album sales ranged anywhere from 40,000 to 278,000 for Taylor Swift?s blockbuster third album 'Speak Now.'"



Apple has devoted its webpage to the iTunes Beatles announcement, and is running an extensive marketing campaign that includes prominent placement on iTunes as well as TV ads airing during primetime programming, including ABC's American Music Awards and NBC's Sunday Night Football.



The report stated that Apple's media campaign is "expected to kick into high gear this for Black Friday, with expanded TV advertising in the U.S. and full-page ads in the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times."
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 28
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    Well so much for the 'Everyone has got them" rants! I am shocked to be honest. I bet Yoko (corrected thanks to Spamsandwich) is kicking herself for holding out so long.
  • Reply 2 of 28
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by digitalclips View Post


    Well so much for the 'Everyone has got them" rants! I am shocked to be honest. I bet Oko is kicking herself for holding out so long.



    It is kind of amazing. I wonder how much Apple will benefit from the exclusivity.
  • Reply 3 of 28
    tbelltbell Posts: 3,146member
    Probably not at all because it probably had to pay for the rights.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    It is kind of amazing. I wonder how much Apple will benefit from the exclusivity.



  • Reply 4 of 28
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TBell View Post


    Probably not at all because it probably had to pay for the rights.



    I thought Michael Jackson own the rights???
  • Reply 5 of 28
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Macbook831 View Post


    I thought Michael Jackson own the rights???



    Yes and no:



    http://www.snopes.com/music/artists/jackson.asp
  • Reply 6 of 28
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Macbook831 View Post


    I thought Michael Jackson own the rights???



    I think he died or something.
  • Reply 7 of 28
    Quote:

    A week after adding the Beatles to iTunes, Apple has sold 450,000 albums and 2 million songs.



    I wonder how much net profit they'll make after the huge amount of Beatles-on iTunes promotional advertising they've done? I wouldn't be surprised if it's not significant. How much do they make on an average album? Is it as much as a buck?



    Interesting to see that a George Harrison song - Here Comes the Sun - is the top selling tune! I have to say that it is the song I think of, just a much as "She Love You", as exemplary Beatles music.
  • Reply 8 of 28
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by pembroke View Post


    I wonder how much net profit they'll make after the huge amount of Beatles-on iTunes promotional advertising they've done? I wouldn't be surprised if it's not significant. How much do they make on an average album? Is it as much as a buck?



    Interesting to see that a George Harrison song - Here Comes the Sun - is the top selling tune! I have to say that it is the song I think of, just a much as "She Love You", as exemplary Beatles music.



    I don't think Apple had profit in mind when doing this deal. iTunes/Beatles... Beatles/iTunes... this deal puts iTunes into the minds of a bunch of new customers (imo)... iTunes is not just for the young.
  • Reply 9 of 28
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Prof. Peabody View Post


    I think he died or something.



    I seem to remember it was or something ... \
  • Reply 10 of 28
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by digitalclips View Post


    Well so much for the 'Everyone has got them" rants! I am shocked to be honest. I bet Oko is kicking herself for holding out so long.



    Who's Oko? I'm quite sure you meant Yoko.
  • Reply 11 of 28
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Prof. Peabody View Post


    I think he died or something.



    It'll be confirmed when Steve says so.
  • Reply 12 of 28
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SpamSandwich View Post


    Who's Oko? I'm quite sure you meant Yoko.



    Freudian slip
  • Reply 13 of 28
    These numbers must be wrong because I read on AppleInsider, MacDailyNews, and Mac Rumors that no one wants the Beatles. They're old. Anyone who likes them already has them.,.



    And we all know that these are 3 "highly respected" journalistic websites.
  • Reply 14 of 28
    brucepbrucep Posts: 2,823member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SpamSandwich View Post


    Who's Oko? I'm quite sure you meant Yoko.



    oko moko foko

    the beetles will get over 300 million tune clients by 2016

    and in china russia india africa the beetles are huge



    she loves you yea yea yea





    9
  • Reply 15 of 28
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post




    The Beatles' best selling album on iTunes in the US was 1969's "Abbey Road," while the top selling song was that album's track, "Here Comes the Sun."





    Good for Georgey Boy!
  • Reply 16 of 28
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by island hermit View Post


    I don't think Apple had profit in mind when doing this deal. iTunes/Beatles... Beatles/iTunes... this deal puts iTunes into the minds of a bunch of new customers (imo)... iTunes is not just for the young.



    Yes - having the Beatles may not bring in dollars directly but it is another large and very visible feather in iTunes' hat and as such it is very good marketing. This also proves how very lazy people are and also how trigger happy people are. After all these years so many people had not managed to get the Beatles into their iTunes libraries out of sheer laziness. No evidence here, just a gut feeling. (I know I'm right, tho) Also, now that the Beatles are on iTunes it is so easy it almost seem like a new brilliant idea - just click and you can have the WHOLE collection. There are a lot of old(ish) folks out there who don't much like/know new music. A lot of folk with a lot of disposable income.
  • Reply 17 of 28
    rokradrokrad Posts: 143member
    It was all planned from the beginning.... there was a reason for holding out and it worked.
  • Reply 18 of 28
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by digitalclips View Post


    Well so much for the 'Everyone has got them" rants! I am shocked to be honest. I bet Yoko (corrected thanks to Spamsandwich) is kicking herself for holding out so long.



    No surprise that the iTunes Store sold so many Beatles. Remember, when Michael Jackson died, every single song on the Top Ten were his for several days. This "everyone has got them" rant is only uttered by fools. A lot of commenters seem to assume that only baby boomers are interested in the Beatles which is completely wrong.



    Note that the world's population is also expanding. Heck, in the United States alone, there's a need for about 120,000 new jobs every month, just to keep up with population growth.
  • Reply 19 of 28
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by brucep View Post


    and in china russia india africa the beetles are huge



    Yes, they are...







    And now I've finally got the beetles on my iPhone...







    PEOPLE:



    A "beetle" is an insect with hard protective wing covers.



    A "Beatle" is usually named John, Paul, George or Ringo.
  • Reply 20 of 28
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tonton View Post




    PEOPLE:



    A "beetle" is an insect with hard protective wing covers.



    A "Beatle" is usually named John, Paul, George or Ringo.



    haha, cool bug pics!
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