Up until about a week ago, I never paid any attention to the apple
lossless codec because we currently deal mostly with .aiffs and mp3s. I
haven't done a stitch of research on the subject (which is unlike me)
but it sounds like some of you have done plenty. However, (after a
little research this time) I think you've gotten it backwards on the
AAC licensing fee. According to several sources on the web (below), mp3
is the format that requires a licensing fee for implementing the codec
in players/software AND distribution of files in the format. AAC also
requires a licensing fee for manufacturers/developers to implement the
codec in software and embed the codec into players but requires NO FEE
for distribution. My understanding is that there's a controversy
surrounding who actually owns the various patents needed to implement
the mp3 format. Technically, everyone who distributes mp3s should be
paying a fee to do so, but until the legal issues get resolved, that
probably can't be enforced. Furthermore, at least in the US, the patent
has almost expired. They last for 20 years and the mp3 patent was
granted in 1991, so licensing fees may never be a real issue.
http://www.vialicensing.com/licensing/MPEG4_FAQ.cfm?faq=6#6
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Audio_Coding
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MP3
Boyer
On Apr 20, 2007, at 2:09 AM, Odeluga, Ken wrote:
Thing is though (more sober second thoughts!) I think you need a
licence
to be able to distribute files in Apple file format (at least that's
the
case with AAC/.m4a) and I've never heard of anyone doing so in the
actual lossless codec, which makes me think that it might not even be
possible... :-/
-----Original Message-----
From: Brian Boyer [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sent: 19 April 2007 22:36
To: David Powers
Cc: [email protected]
Subject: Re: (313) New Strand Release - Soleil
I'm wondering how open people would be to the Apple Lossless codec? It
produces about the same size file as a FLAC, suffers no loss in sound
quality and, according to Apple, can be used with any current Quicktime
application, the most popular of which I'd imagine is the Quicktime
player, followed by iTunes. Somewhere between 70 and 80% of the
portable music player market has an iPod, so things should be
relatively painless for the majority of people. Thoughts?
Boyer
On Apr 19, 2007, at 12:44 PM, David Powers wrote:
If you are selling to DJ's I'd make WAV's available. I buy from
beatport and always get WAV unless I'm unsure about whether I'll
actually play a track out or just want it for listening.
~David
On 4/19/07, Brian Boyer <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Ken,
You're probably right about that and once we can afford to make the
change, it wouldn't hurt to offer the option for those who want it.
It's nice to know that the increased effort we've put into delivering
well produced songs is matched by people's desire to have the best
sounding version they can get their hands on. I think we're getting
better with each release and one of our goals is to reach a level of
quality that stands up to anything out there, regardless of budget or
genre.
Boyer
On Apr 19, 2007, at 9:24 AM, Odeluga, Ken wrote:
Hi Brian. Taking aboard what you say in terms of logistics and
feasibility but we can still say that in fact in Europe (I know I
can't
speak for regions outside of here) boradband 'penetration' (as it's
called) outstrips dial-up usage by some majority which I forget.
However I definitely know that's true. The other thing of course is
that
you are likely to have a particularly techy audience - definitely
favouring higher band-width rather than lower and not having any
qualms
about larger file sizes if it means better quality. Imho.
-----Original Message-----
From: Brian Boyer [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sent: 19 April 2007 14:03
To: robin
Cc: [email protected]
Subject: Re: (313) New Strand Release - Soleil
Thanks again for the compliments, Robin. We don't pay you nearly
enough
for that...I mean...you raise an excellent point. Buying a Strand
song
costs less than many checkout counter impulse items. They're less
than
some packs of gum and the flavor lasts a lot longer.
As for the .wavs, after the ecommerce portion of the site was
finished,
it dawned on me that I shouldn't have been so fixated on mp3s and
should've at least allowed for AACs and possibly uncompressed
.wavs.
That functionality is going to have to wait, however, because
making
the change isn't exactly cheap. A five minute, uncompressed, stereo
audio file weighs in at about 55MB and the FLAC version is about
35MB,
and you need special software (most are free) to decode them. I
know
some other services are offering uncompressed formats, but I wonder
how
well they sell given the large file sizes. This is really only a
concern for people with dial-up and inadequate DSL connections, but
if
I'm not mistaken, the majority of people connect to the internet
using
the slower methods.
Boyer
On Apr 19, 2007, at 5:22 AM, robin wrote:
Lovely mellow techy vibe on that new track Brian.
Props for the provision of a remastered 'Intact' (the last Strand
track) for free to previous purchasers too.
UK people, as the dollar is so weak buying these tracks off the
Harbonder site is stupidly cheap now (99c=50p!). Though I'd like
to
see .wavs for maybe $1.49 (Brian?).
robin...
On 17 Apr 2007, at 22:37, Brian Boyer wrote:
Today, Strand released the second single on harbonder entitled
"Soleil". If you fancy, you can hear it in its entirety on our
myspace page for the next month or so. This and all other Strand
material is available for download from the harbonder website.
There
are no plans for vinyl at this time, but when that changes, we'll
let
you know. As always, don't be shy about what you think. We
welcome
the feedback.
Cheers,
Boyer
http://www.harbonder.com
http://www.myspace.com/strand313
