Music lovers like you in 21 countries around the globe have purchased one billion songs from the iTunes Music Store. And for helping us reach this massive milestone in digital music history, we’d like to thank you.
The billionth song, ”Speed of Sound,” was purchased as part of Coldplay’s “X&Y” album by Alex Ostrovsky from West Bloomfield, Michigan. As the grand prize winner, he will receive a 20-inch iMac, 10 fifth generation iPods, and a $10,000 Music Card good for any item on the iTunes Music Store. In addition, to commemorate this milestone, Apple will establish a scholarship to the world-renowned Juilliard School in his name.
“I hope that every customer, artist, and music company executive takes a moment today to reflect on what we’ve achieved together during the past three years,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Over one billion songs have now been legally purchased and downloaded around the globe, representing a major force against music piracy and the future of music distribution as we move from CDs to the Internet.”
Grand Prize Winner -
Alex Ostrovsky
The prize for the billionth song purchased:
iMac, iPod and iTunes Gift Card
* One 20-inch iMac
* Ten 60GB iPods (5 white/5 black)
* One U.S. $10,000 iTunes Music Card (good for any media type)
The best digital jukebox and the #1 music download store, iTunes is the best way for Mac and PC users to legally discover, purchase, and download music. Visit the iTunes Music Store 24/7, purchase individual songs or entire albums, search and browse for new music, enjoy groundbreaking personal use rights, then sync everything to your iPod seamlessly.
With Apple’s legendary ease of use, pioneering features such as integrated video and podcasting support, iMix playlist sharing, seamless integration with iPod, and groundbreaking personal use rights, the iTunes Music Store is the best way for Mac and PC users to legally discover, purchase, and download music and videos online. The iTunes Music Store now features a selection of over 3,500 music videos, Pixar and Disney short films, a variety of hit TV shows, 35,000 podcasts, 16,000 audiobooks, and more than two million songs from the major music companies and independent record labels.
The iTunes Music Store is also the world’s most popular video download store with more than 15 million videos purchased and downloaded. iTunes offers over 60 popular TV shows for just $1.99 for viewing on a computer or iPod, and recently added new hit programming from ABC, Bravo, NBC, MTV Networks, and SHOWTIME.