Addictive recreation of an old-time favorite.

Galaga Remix was created by Namco, and it is a brilliant remake of the original arcade game. Galaga Remix includes an updated version as well as the original 1981 Galaga. The old version of the game does allow you to reclaim a captured ship so you can have double the firepower with dual ships like in the old arcade game, however this app really shines with the updated version. The new Galaga’s graphics are much easier on the eyes, and includes new boss battles, multiple upgrades for your ship, and plenty of levels.

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This week, a bunch of rumors have been circulating that Apple is preparing to offer an Unlimited subscription to iTunes on a yearly basis with hardware purchase.

Will we be clicking Subscribe anytime soon?

This past Tuesday, a report from Financial Times cited internal sources from within Apple claiming that the company is considering the option of subscription with a purchase of new hardware for the future. Similar to Nokia’s recent “Comes with Music”, a bundling of a one year subscription to their music store rolled into either hardware or service charges, thus appearing to the consumer as free. Theoretically, new iPod Touch or iPhone users could opt for this service for a premium charge- more likely free to iPhone purchasers and a fee for those who buy the iPod Touch. The idea would not only entice customers to use Apple’s iTunes but keep them with the Fair-Play DRM.

Now, this could be possible, but considering Jobs’ stance on subscription, it is probably unlikely. In April 2003, Apple introduced the iTunes Music Store, offering a pay-as-you go model- even allowing you to buy single tracks off an album. Steve Jobs has always been adamant against the subscription model. In the December 2003 issue of Rolling Stone, Jobs said:

While Jobs sometimes goes back on statements similar to these, besides the movie rentals, he has remained fairly consistent with the pay-as-you-go model in the 5 years since the introduction of the iTunes Store. With over 4 billion songs sold to date, the iTunes Store accounts for more than 70% of all digital music sales worldwide.

Even beyond the large success of the iTunes Store, while the Unlimited iTunes Music model might not be a bad idea both for Apple and iTunes, it will not happen- at least not in the near future. Until we see a successful subscription model come out, or even the success of the Nokia “Comes with Music” promotion, we can rest assured that Jobs and Co will remain selling tracks to own for years to come. Scratch this one off your rumor list.

Last week Trent Reznor released a collection of instrumental tracks independently, in a surprise move even his fans couldn’t anticipate. The collection, called Ghosts I-IV, was done in a ten week period last fall, produced mostly by himself and a few of his friends. The album’s first 9 tracks can be downloaded on Bittorrent officially for free, while users can also choose to download just the music and a 40 page PDF for $5. If listeners really want a physical product, they can pay $10 for two CDs, $75 for a deluxe edition, or $300 for a limited edition with vinyl, CDs, and even a data DVD of all the multitracks.

Astoundingly, the download site was hit with so many requests that it had to be shutdown for several hours so it could handle all the traffic. Thankfully for some, the album was still available on Amazon, where this author was happily able to download 36 high quality tracks for the very low price of $5. Most people would see this as just an attempt to copy Radiohead and gain free publicity; however, by looking deeper into the way the idea was executed, it is clear that Trent Reznor takes it one step, if not three steps, into the future of the music industry.

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Since its induction on April 28th, 2003, the iTunes Store has been the internet’s most popular digital content source (that is, legal source). Yearly selling over 3 billion songs, not to mention millions of television shows, music videos, and movies, the iTunes Store easily holds the lion’s share of the market and has set the standard for digital media stores today.
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