HMV Music Download Kiosk in Singapore

Music downloads have threatened physical CD sales and stores like HMV for a while now. A new HMV store in Singapore is trying something new though ...

They will have music download kiosks available for users to download their favorite songs right to their phones. Here's the full story:

Buy HMV Digital Downloads for a Song - Article by AsiaOne.

I think stores trying to diversify and 'get with the times' in a sense is great however there are a few negative points to consider with a music download kiosk.

First off, I don't see how they'll ever be able to match per song pricing of music download sites. It just doesn't make sense. The extra expense of having a kiosk in a physical building where you would have to compare renting the space for millions as oppossed to only website hosting costs will force them to jack up prices in comparison to music download services. This is what is expected as well according to the article.

Per song pricing is expecting to be anywhere between $0.80 per song up to $1.69 for the more popular titles and files will have certain DRM encryption, limiting their use and how many computer's they could be shared on at once. These files will also not be compatible with iPhones or iPods where as at Amazon MP3 or iTunes, songs are on a variable pricing model as well but from $0.69 to $1.29 and with little to no restrictions.

Perhaps the conveniance of being in a shopping mall and wanting a particular song on the spot can have some overlook the extra few cents and limitations but it's an overpriced product for now. Very happy they are working towards going digital but will have to find a way to do it and stay competitive with sites offering music downloads at such lower prices and no restrictions.