Last week doubleTwist, the media management software company with DVD Jon as its CTO, released a remake of Apple’s classic 1984 commercial featuring none other than Steve Jobs as a malevolent dictator. The commercial closed with a promise. “On October 6th, doubleTwist brings you Choice“.
Today, doubleTwist has revealed what it means by that: doubleTwist now includes an integrated Music Store, powered by Amazon’s MP3 Store. But unlike iTunes, this app will let you transfer your files to non-Apple devices. The store includes Amazon’s catalog of over 5 million songs, allowing users to purchase songs either as albums or individual tracks (there’s also plenty of free songs available). From a design standpoint, it’s clear that iTunes served as a big inspiration — if you’ve ever used the iTunes Store before, it will take you all of thirty seconds to figure out how to use this one.
In fact, it’s probably safe to say that the new doubleTwist music store is actually easier to use to download music than iTunes is, simply because there’s so much less going on. Upon launching the store you’ll see a handful of top albums and songs, along with a prominent search box at the top of the screen. Click on an album and you’ll see a list of the disc’s tracks, which you can click for a 30 second preview. To buy something simply enter your Amazon ID.
Of course, the store is easier to navigate than iTunes for a reason: there are no movie or TV downloads, no playlists or mixes, and obviously no App Store. But for music, it works like a charm. And there are more features in the pipeline, including recommendations, artist bios, and song ratings.
Once you’ve downloaded your music, you can drag and drop it into whatever device you’ve connected to your computer. Unlike iTunes, doubleTwist supports hundreds of devices, including the Pre, BlackBerry, PSP, Android, and others. The application also lets you manage your photos and movie files, though the company says it doesn’t currently have plans to offer video downloads.
All in all, this is a very impressive effort. Before now Amazon’s MP3 store has been primarily browser based (there are some mobile devices that support it but doubleTwist believes this is the first desktop based application to integrate the store). And there’s no doubt that the doubleTwist download experience is far better than navigating Amazon in your browser. doubleTwist is going to have a hard time convincing the throngs of iPod and iPhone users on iTunes to make the switch, but for anyone else using a device that’s not supported by Apple, it’s quickly turning into a very appealing solution.
doubleTwist’s Music Store is currently available in the Mac version of the app, with the PC version coming soon. The store is currently US-only, but doubleTwist says that UK, German, and French versions are on the way.
Hopefully they also allow 7digital purchases as well. They just launched with $.77/7.77 single/album pricing in the US and have made the site easy to integrate into 3rd party apps. Sounds like that’s exactly up doubleTwist’s ally.
http://latimesb...-in-the-us.html
The idea and execution are very impressive, and the generally lower cost of Amazon MP3s makes this a no-brainer.
I wonder how long until iPhones and iPods mysteriously stop working with this (They’re still working on getting iPhone 3.0 to work).
Yeah that’s a deal breaker. I wouldn’t buy something that might later not work on my preferred device.
Apple has locked me in
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I wouldn’t pay for it either since it’s free. But thanks for the spam, I mean comment.
*shrug* what’s Apple gonna do, remotely upgrade your iPod’s firmware?
Remember, the only reason that the Pre stopped working was new versions of iTunes. There might actually be reasons to do that upgrade. I don’t think I’ve ever upgraded my iPod’s firmware.
Looks to be way easier to manage than iTunes. Basically a non-proprietary iTunes, just a little smaller library though at 5 million songs, while iTunes is boasting somewhere around 10 million (I think this is right, but I’ve been wrong before)
You know what? I like it, and one of the main reasons is they still have the 3-pane browser on top. iTunes 9 killed basically my favorite feature.
iTunes 9 did not kill this, it only gave you more options. View> Column Browser> On Top
Interesting idea and I hope they spend more time polishing it, but it pretty badly failed the 5 minute test.
After registering it bombed out and I had to restart it. Then when I did get in, it says “The movie contains an invalid data reference” for every one of my mp3s I try to play. (not movies, mp3s)
It’s heavily pegging my processor with whatever it’s doing. I do have a large library (~20,000 mp3s, all legal), but if it’s doing something so that I need to wait until it’s ready, it should give some sort of progress indicator.
Give it some more baking time and hopefully they’ll have something.
This will quickly become the #1 competitor to iTunes.
I don’t think so (but do hope so).
Here’s why:
1. iTunes comes with every iPhone and iPod (and Mac) sold. Those are the hotest portable music players right now. People are usualy lazy (and under-informed, not everyone reads TC, you know), so they won’t switch.
2. There will probably be another competitor (or more then one) just a few months from now. Even the rumor about Microsoft considering to let iPhone users use Zune services is pointing that way.
3. These guys are creative but they don’t have the sheer power of Apple or other giants.
4. They’re not Apple.
So, if they have any success at all, i would expect it to be a SLOW rise, maybe like what FireFox did to IE.
Which leads me to the thought that they should probably open their program for developers, to build some extensions and such, that would give them an edge over Apple.
I think likening this to Firefox v IE is right on the money. DoubleTwist still has quite a long way to go, but the Amazon MP3 store gives them a source of revenues which means development can pick up pace.
As long as they can get this working with the iPhone I can certainly see myself moving across. Well that and a good podcast directory.
I’ve bought an ipod and an iphone from the apple store and didn’t get itunes with either product. the instructions told me to download it but that isn’t the same as it coming on the device or on a disk. i have itunes because it is easy to buy apps through and it makes the process of downloading music and transferring to device easy. if it wasn’t for the price apple charges for songs (almost twice as much in australia as the us), it might be my primary music finder. as it is, I download mp3s convert them and then transfer them to my ipnone/ipod touch by alternate means. this is a more lengthy process but it works and I have saved about US$300 so far. itunes on windows is also one of the buggiest programs and I am constantly having to manually reinstall in order to get it to sync with my phone. when this program finally comes to windows and if the songs are indeed cheaper, I might get rid of itunes altogeather and just use the app store app on the phone itself.
Interesting – anyone know how they integrated the Amazon mp3 store? I didn’t know there was an API for it
There is not an API. At least not a public one
They either have an exclusive partnership with Amazon (no news from Amazon endorsing it), or is scraping pages and pretending to be a browser (unlikely), or they have a back door into Amazon.
It is DVD Jon. I would not rule that out. He made a thing called PyMusique too put a unauthorized GUI interface on iTunes a few year ago (but that stripped DRM)
doubleTwist is doing some pretty cool things. They are being very bold by taking on iTunes so directly, especially with that ad that they run.
The only thing I don’t like is their logo, they will never be very popular with a logo like that. It just doesn’t give the sense that it’s a prominent/important app. It makes it seem like a random application that you download off the internet to do random things.
Anyway, yay doubleTwist. Keep up the great work.
The logo? Really? I’d wager 99% of people didn’t even notice it.
I interviewed with doubleTwist a while back – VERY impressive and smart team. Best of luck DT.
This is pretty cool, Google should partner up with them, and change the name and icon too, having an itunes experience for Android phones would be a huge win for Android, I can imagine already Android Market on this thing, Google GET ON IT!!! Unless you are working on something similar already.
I like spazzy upstarts challenging the big boys..like the Karate Kid or something.
Apple, you goin down son!
This is absolutely awesome. Now imagine if they integrated the worlds music stores AND replaced the weak Apple recommendation system. They’d quickly become the de facto go-to place for music which is of course Apple’s worst fear.
Google likes doubletwist and is on their side. Google and doubletwist are creating “rear” entrance for Apple. Bend over Apple!
Good to have more options in this space. Would love to see a strong competitor emerge. DoubleTwist’s bold step up is great to see.
“doubleTwist’s Music Store is currently available in the Mac version of the app, with the PC version coming soon.”
Why on earth would they start with a Mac version if they are going after devices that are not iPods. I understand that some Mac users use non-iPods for music, but this decision makes absolutely no sense to me. They should have at least released Mac and PC at the same time.
Thoughts from others?
Because it takes time to make multiple versions, and they released the one that was finished first?
And why would you choose to first finish the version that is limited to iPods if your reason for existence is to be available on non iPod devices?
The Windows version will be out next week.
They’ve made the Windows version available now, I’m installing it as I write this comment.
Give em a chance, they’re doin great work and they’re a start-up and an aggressive one at that!
I installed but I must say the installation part sucks big time. It downloaded so many components and took a while to install. Apart from that, its a cool app
I find it odd that they only have a mac only app right now. Don’t most mac users just stay in the Apple Eco-system? I assume their target market should be more PC-user based. You know would be really cool? If they offered DRM free downloads from a lot of stores not just Amazon, that way they would be the aggregate of lots of stores & possibly show you a version of the song that is cheaper on 1 store compared to another.
If all it ends up being an iTunes copy-cat with Amazon for the store instead of Apple I don’t think they are going get mac users use it. I already have to use iTunes to sync my apps, & my podcasts – so using DoubleTwist would be an addition for me not a replacement.
I believe the photo/media sharing component is the secret sauce here, something iTunes doesn’t even do!
gomusic.ru (gomusicnow.com) $0.15 non-drm’d mp3s. eat it apple, amazon, and anyone else.
It’s about time someone recognized iTunes as a monopoly with bloated software (sound familiar Microsoft?).
Monopoly??…, For god sake you can’t have a Monopoly on your own product.
And it has been deemed that iTunes is Not a Monopoly.
This has been beaten like a dead horse,
Listing of Top online Music Sellers.
1.) You have – Amazon Music Store,
2.) You Have – Microsoft Market Place for Music and Video. (Zune, Xbox,ect.)
3.) You Have – eMusic
4.) You Have – Napster
5.) You Have – Rhapsody
6.) You Have – iTunes
Just because itunes is efficient and popular doesn’t mean it is a Monopoly.
People Like you throw that word (MONOPOLY) around like it is some kind of poison dagger to represent itunes,
The fact are listed Above, 6 Top Music Sellers also many more that you can purchase Legal Music or video from online.
No itunes Monopoly look at the above 6 distributors.
End end Discussion You Are Wrong.
And as for your “Bloated Software Claim” You entitled to your opinion.
Source? Hasn’t iTunes been touting the fact that they are the #1 music retailer in the US for some time now? #2 being Walmart last I checked. Would love to know where your info is coming from.
No, you’re wrong.
Those are some crap stats you have there.
Amazon and eMusic more popular than iTunes? Get real.
And iTunes have been touted #1 retailed in US for AGES!!!
I’m sorry, but no way is Rhapsody bigger.
Get some real facts, then come back.
Aim and Ignite is a great album.
I have amazing taste in music.
Well, you already have Techcrunch Europe, so why do not establish Techcrunch USA and categorize all this kind of US-only news there (and AT&T and Verizon, etc, etc). Or if this kind of move is too “politically charged” then please mirror all international/not localized writings and news to the Europe site?
This will a perfect solution for Linux and something that Linux needs. I use Ubuntu and I have an iPod Touch, this will stop me starting up Windows only for iTunes.
Linux version please.
I’m afraid it has all the same problems as iTunes. No Linux install and no Flac support!
ya damon me to afraid of that you said right & it too time taken
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Everyone seems to be confusing the iTunes *application* and the iTunes *store* (understandably – Apple don’t do a good job of separating them). But they are separate: just because the iTunes application doesn’t support lots of devices doesn’t mean you can’t transfer music you download from the store to other devices. It means you can’t use the iTunes *application* to do it. The music files themselves are DRM free, and stored in a reasonable place and structure on your on computer.
Apple are doing the typical apple thing of limiting the store so only the iTunes application can access it, which sucks, but it does not mean that Apple have limited what devices you can play the music on.
I’m no Apple apologist – I think people should be free to download music (legally) from lots of sources and put them on whatever device they like – but Apple does not limit you on either front. They just force you to use their client to connect to their store instead of allowing you to use a browser (which, I agree, sucks).
Damn. I was waiting for something like this. I broke free of the iPod/iTunes cage six months ago, but have been buying songs on Amazon and it hasn’t been pleasant- clicking through webpages, adding them to my music player manually. I couldn’t believe it took someone this long to develop a decent front end to Amazon (DRM-FREE) music store, but now it’s here I can shut up about that.
For the record … I don’t think iTunes is the big bad culprit TC and followers make it out to be.
After all, what was standing in the way of another vendor of portable music devices from creating a really decent music syncing application?
You cry DRM!!! Nope. DRM is dead and was only a measure Apple adopted at the behest of the music industry in order to even get the store rolling.
So what was preventing someone from doing this?
Nothing. Nothing at all.
Long live iTunes! It satisfies my needs. I love the iPod and iPhone too so take that.
I have no problem with iTunes.
The iTunes application or the iTunes Store is not the problem. The problem is vendors of other media players who choose to not provide decent media syncing software. Just like Palm in the old PDA days — they provided the only decent (and that’s a stretch) sync software and the device ruled.
Nothing prevented other vendors from making a doubletwist like app before now.
This is not genius but it is a great example of striking on an opportunity.
i have always hated itunes and been searching forever for an acceptable USABLE replacement. here’s hoping that doubletwist becomes that replacement. there r not there yet, but hoping. btw just wrote about my experience with dt thus far (approaching poetic) –> http://web-poet...p3-doubletwist/