Letters to the Editor
-
In defense of Tull + consumer concern
First off, just want to support Jethro Tull against all the weird criticism they've been getting here. A fantastic band, with many great albums, and "Witch's Promise" is a wonderful song. The sound on their albums is no better or worse than the times they recorded in, and once you understand that sound, you can evaluate it, so all the snippy comments seem a bit ridiculous to me. And anyway, if Apple is marketing better sound quality, you shouldn't have to listen to only a brand-new mega-budget recording to get it.
A lot of good points against and in favor of Apple's approach have been made here. What troubles me, I suppose, is how this was hidden from the consumer. Of course, with a digital system like this, no one can expect the nuts and bolts to be visible to everyone--a lot has to be concealed just for it to function. But there are certain assumptions that the average buyer makes when purchasing a product, and this violates one of them. When you buy something, you expect it to be a standalone, static entity that is the same for anyone who buys it. You don't expect that can of soup you just bought to have your e-mail address embedded in it when it crosses the supermarket scanner. In short, you don't expect the product you buy to customize itself invisibly when you buy it.
The result sounds like Schrodinger for capitalism: the act of buying something changes that which is bought. Which, in this age of dwindling privacy, is a concern.