Apples app store, however, is still somewhat like the wild west (at least as far as music goes), where the rules are being made up in real time. Artists and labels can sell music alongside other digital offerings through the app store at any price from zero to $999.99.
As we suggested last summer, this creates an opportunity for artists and labels to distribute a new type of product, especially because the app store concept is spreading to other mobile phone platforms.
On Monday, six of the 20 most recently submitted music apps to appear in the App Store featured a single artist: Jason Carver, Jessica Harp, Jimmy Cliff, John Butler Trio, Kadence, or The Cribs. Each showcases music videos, photos, news, photo-jumble games, concert listings, and/or community features that let fans share photos with each other. And all of them were made with iLikes iPhone app toolkit as was Ingrid Michaelsons app, pictured to the right.
Since iLike launched the service in May, about 250 of the over 300,000 artists with access to iLikes dashboard feature have launched customized iPhone apps through the system.
Were encouraged by the positive response our create-your-own-app platform has generated, and this is only the beginning, said iLike CEO Ali Partovi. (The company also announced a new version of its Local Concerts app on Tuesday, with concert listings based on your music library, push notification for shows, maps to venues, and concert information sharing.)
These artist-specific apps, which labels also develop in-house, place a constantly-updating tattoo on fans phones. Its like having a music subscription, but in the sense of a fan club, rather than in the sense of subscribing to music in general as one would with Rhapsody.
iLikes music apps are free and promotional. Other apps contain full songs, and cost money.
For more information contact All About Jazz.
