Apple's latest iTunes feature is a bit of a gamble for those that sign up.
"iTunes Pass" will let users download anything that a particular band releases in a specific window of time. In the service's first experiment, $18.99 is good for Depeche Mode's upcoming album, early access to the single, an extra track, a remix and any other bonus material that comes along between now and June 16.
The "fair market value" of all this content, Apple says, will be greater than $18.99, so there's no need to worry about getting ripped off. But if you don't like everything that's offered in the package, too bad; there are no refunds, returns or cancellations. On the plus side, iTunes automatically downloads everything as it comes, and Apple will send e-mail reminders when new content is released. Also, the files are DRM-free and encoded at 256 Kbps.
At nearly double the price of a digital album download, iTunes Pass doesn't seem like a great deal. Then again, I'm not a huge Depeche Mode fan, so I couldn't immediately wrap my head around the concept. Even for my favorite bands, it'd be a stretch.
But that's okay. There are probably a decent number of people that will take up this offer, and it's not hurting anyone else.
