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Apple is working on a new digital music format

time.com

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Re: Apple is working on a new digital music format

#21

Post by Slackwise »

stevekl wrote: post #7

Great, another proprietary format. While I want everything to be open and interoperable, I personally work in a startup that aims to make profit. So I also understand the commercial reasons of proprietary technologies. So, I am torn, what should be proprietary and what should be open?

Formats should never be proprietary. That's just holding user data hostage.

Really, nothing should be proprietary, or at least not proprietary forever.Take note of Id Software's approach of open-sourcing their engines X years after release of the accompanying game.

If we keep releasing proprietary systems, nothing will be archived or usable in the future, if the source is never released. Hundreds of video games are going to be inaccessible in the future due to DRM servers, or proprietary backends.

I mean, I can ramble on forever, but it's pretty clear that non-free[1] software is bad for the future of people and society. Snowden proved RMS right.

[1]: Free as in freedom: http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html (You can still charge money for free software or related services. Not everyone can run their own Google, even if they open sourced it all. But that's a whole 'nother set or arguments.)

Re: Apple is working on a new digital music format

#23

Post by ceejayoz »

dandelany wrote: post #18

Here's something I've always wanted: A consumer music file format that preserves all of the underlying tracks ('stems') so that they can be adjusted while you listen to the song. Imagine listening to a recording and going "ooh, that bassline", and then turning up the bassist and turning down everything else to hear it better. Or easily "remixing" while you listen by eg. applying a filter to only the drums. You could…

I imagine this being greeted with fury and lawsuits from the artists. I remember a company in Utah that made family-friendly cuts of popular movies being sued for the modifications.

Re: Apple is working on a new digital music format

#24

Post by ceejayoz »

sp332 wrote: post #13

I'm betting on Freemium DRM. Listen to the crummy version for free, or plug the file into a totalitarian DRM system to pay for and decrypt the good version.

Given the big deal Apple made about dropping DRM, I doubt that. It'll probably be something to support extended content. iTunes has some packages that come with video, PDF, etc. content as well as the music already.

Re: Apple is working on a new digital music format

#25

Post by imaginenore »

dandelany wrote: post #18

Here's something I've always wanted: A consumer music file format that preserves all of the underlying tracks ('stems') so that they can be adjusted while you listen to the song. Imagine listening to a recording and going "ooh, that bassline", and then turning up the bassist and turning down everything else to hear it better. Or easily "remixing" while you listen by eg. applying a filter to only the drums. You could…

There are tons of formats like that. Midi, old tracker ones (s3m, xm, mod).

But very few artists are willing to publish the "source code" of their work.

Re: Apple is working on a new digital music format

#27

Post by dcarmo »

rustynails wrote: post #11
Nicholas_C wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would bet money that it will be.

Some potential ideas - pay per listen, local cache - embedded lyrics, photos - extra sound bytes (exclusive to track owners) - optional videos - asynchronous Comms with the band: FAQs. News, interviews, etc There are many things you can do that link purchased content with other content. Adding lyrics that appear in realtime would also be handy. My ideas are now patented. Pay me 5% of all future sales please... Isn't…

Embedded lyrics please

Re: Apple is working on a new digital music format

#28

Post by shaggy »

Above CD quality has been tried many times. Currently, the service with the most to offer in terms of catalog is https://www.hdtracks.com/faq. You do have to re-buy albums you might already own, but the choices are ever expanding and include a lot of great stuff.

The point in the article about the new format helping lesser known artists really shows just how little U2 and Bono actually get about the current state of the music industry. Artists are getting completely screwed by labels and must tour by necessity to make money. In fact, with the huge growth in the festival industry, small acts (and large acts of old) can make significant chunks of money they otherwise wouldn't. To Bono's point, Cole Porter could tour and make lots of money doing it today. He may not have wanted to, but it'd be possible. A new digital format isn't going to change that.

Re: Apple is working on a new digital music format

#30

Post by jaimebuelta »

dandelany wrote: post #18

Here's something I've always wanted: A consumer music file format that preserves all of the underlying tracks ('stems') so that they can be adjusted while you listen to the song. Imagine listening to a recording and going "ooh, that bassline", and then turning up the bassist and turning down everything else to hear it better. Or easily "remixing" while you listen by eg. applying a filter to only the drums. You could…

It sounds cool, but it will be a disaster. Does anyone remember the "ultra boost" button on the old Walkman to raise the bass to insane levels? Or all the equalizer voodoo, where people will "tune" moving levels and buttons forming shapes?

The sad truth is that audio engineers are way better than anyone else in mixing the music and making it shine. The better approach is not to mess with that and just trust them.

The same thing goes for headphones. It's better to get something more or less neutral in the sound to listen music in the way is supposed to sound, not distorting it adding crazy bass.

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