Napster Premium free trial-sign up and receive 5 free tracks

aviationwiz used our news submit to tell us "it looks like the free trial of Napster Premium that was rumored earlier is finally true." The Napster site is offering a 3 day trial of Napster Premium to all it's Napster members. This also includes five free tracks that can be burned to CD or transferred to a portable device, if you sign up by December 31, 2003. The Premium service is $ 9.95 a month. Any tracks purchased are 99 cents and that is in addition to the monthly fee.

So what are you paying 9.95 a month for? The ability to stream an entire song not just a 30 second sample, downloadable tracks, Napster Radio and a forum. The service has 3 different catagories of WMA content to offer. Here is the skinnys on each.

Napster Premium Service: Streaming Tracks

  • "Streaming" full length tracks within the Napster Premium Service is available on most of the Napster music catalog 
  • Napster does not arbitrarily decide which tracks may be "streamed" in full or as a 30 second music clip. Track streaming and downloading "rights" are decided on by the parties involvedin allowing the content to be a part of the Napster library.
  • "Streaming" can only be acheived when you are connected to the Internet.
  • Napster Radio includes full length streams for ALL radio playlists

Napster Premium Service: Downloading Tracks

  • The Napster Premium Service offers members the ability to "download" a large number of the tracks in our library directly to PC.
  • "Downloaded" tracks may be stored on up to 3 computers.
  • "Downloaded" tracks can be played without being connected to th Internet.
  • "Downloaded" tracks may be played through you home entertainment system.
  • "Downloaded" tracks can be continued to be enjoyed for as long as you are a Napster Premium member (and napster holds the liscense to allow you to do so)

Napster Premium Service: Buying Tracks

  • "Buying" a track allows you to burn a track to a CD or transfer it to a portable device.
  • "Buy" single tracks for 99 cents and albums for $ 9.95. This cost is above and beyond the mothly fee for the Napster Premium Service for $ 9.95.
  • Most tracks in our library offer you the option of "Buying" the track.
  • "Buying" the track also downloads the track to your PC and allows the same options as a "download" but incurs a fee of 99 cents.
  • "Buying" a track gives you increased "rights" than those that come with "downloads". You can burn track to a CD or transfer to a portable device.
  • "Buying" a track allows you to continue to enjoy the tracks, regardless of your membership status with Napster.
  • When "buying" a track the license has essentially been "sold" to you.
  • "30-second samples" allow customers to preview music prior to buying a track.
  • Napster Premium Service: WMA Format.
  • Napster's tracks are in WMA Format, which have encrypted security checks to ensure proper use for each track.
  • The WMA Format security helps give the artists, labels, Publishers, etc. the "peace of mind" to provide acces to their material. The cooperation of these parties is essential to being able to provide more content with more robust titles to you the Napster Member.

Napster Premium Service: Miscellaneous

  • Changing the environment that the original track was downloaded (either by "downloading" or "buying") into by modifying the directory, changing the OS, etc. may affect the ability to playback and/or burn/transfer that track.
  • Napster does not arbitrarily decide which tracks may be "downloaded" or not, or which tracks may be burned/transfered by "buying" them. Track "rights" are decided upon by the parties involved in allowing the content to be part of the Napster library.

Whew, that is a lot of quotation marks there, plus the "miscellaneous" etc part was enough to cause me a severe pain at my left temple. Maybe we are getting a preview of the future of home computing ala Redmonds Longhorn. Let's hope not, this is really a bit too fancy a product to suit me. Also, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, they are lathering on a lot of protection considering this is lossy content. You can take a trip over to Napster headquarters and get the full scoop on this.

Thoughts anyone?

Source: Napster

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