Consumer Electronics Association Applauds Apple and EMI Music for Offering High Resolution Music Downloads; CEA President Gary Shapiro Says Move Will Improve Consumer Experience
Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) President and CEO Gary Shapiro offered his support today for an announcement from Apple and EMI Music that Apple will offer the entire digital music catalog of EMI Music in high quality format. For $1.29 per song, tracks from EMI will be offered at 256 kbps AAC encoding, resulting in audio quality closer to that of a CD. The tracks will also be sold free of digital rights management software that prevents consumers from copying or moving music to other devices.
“CEA applauds Apple and EMI Music for recognizing what consumers really want out of their digital music experience–high resolution recordings worthy of both home and on-the-go listening, along with the freedom to move music among devices,” said Shapiro. “This is the future of digital entertainment.”
“Traditional MP3 files are compressed for space purposes, a process which strips frequencies and important details from each recording. For consumers, this announcement means there is no longer a need to sacrifice quality sound simply for convenience. We think music fans are going to like what they hear.”
Shapiro continued, “CEA encourages other content companies and digital music services to follow the lead of Apple and EMI Music. Companies such as these, which listen as well as respond to customer needs, are well-positioned to succeed in the digital age.”
About CEA:
The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) is the preeminent trade association promoting growth in the consumer technology industry through technology policy, events, research, promotion and the fostering of business and strategic relationships. CEA represents more than 2,100 corporate members involved in the design, development, manufacturing, distribution and integration of audio, video, mobile electronics, wireless and landline communications, information technology, digital imaging, home networking, multimedia and accessory products, as well as related services that are sold through consumer channels. Combined, CEA’s members account for more than $140 billion in annual sales. CEA’s resources are available online at http://www.CE.org, the definitive source for information about the consumer electronics industry.
CEA also sponsors and manages the International CES – Defining Tomorrow’s Technology. All profits from CES are reinvested into industry services, including technical training and education, industry promotion, engineering standards development, market research and legislative advocacy.
