Chapter 7. Shop the iTunes Store

People have been downloading music from the Internet since the 1990s, from sites that were legal and others that were, well, not so much. Music fans loved the convenience, but record companies saw potential profits slipping down millions of modem lines. They fought back by suing file-sharing services and other software companies for aiding and abetting copyright infringement.

The need for a legal music download site was obvious, but most early efforts resulted in skimpy song catalogs and confusing usage rights. Things changed dramatically in April 2003, when the iTunes Music Store went online. Apple made deals with several major record companies to sell digital versions of popular songs for 99 cents a pop—and you could instantly transfer and play the tunes on your iPod or burn them to a CD. Things have gotten even better since.