From around 3pm this afternoon Amazon UK unilaterally decided, without any pre-warning whatsoever to my knowledge, to remove sound samples from their digital music buying platform. I thought it may be a temporary glitch, so called their customer services only to be told that sound samples are no longer available. I told them in no uncertain terms that I thought it was a rather short-sighted decision as why would someone buy new music, albums especially, without being able to sample it first. Customers will just go elsewhere. Let's see how long it takes them to discover this before they reinstate the samples!
If you are an artist/label/promoter or in any way involved with digital music sales on Amazon and disagree with this new 'policy', then I strongly urge you to complain to Amazon in the strongest possible terms as this may severely impact potential sales.
UPDATE 17 Sep 2021. It was pointed out by a reader who left a comment this morning, that I have also experienced, that in addition to removing sound samples, album/EP tracks have been split into individual listings so that it is now not possible to buy a complete album/EP in one transaction, you have to search for all tracks and select/buy them individually. How Amazon feel that this is improving the 'customer experience' beggars belief. I can only suggest that we all log a complaint with Amazon until they 'see sense'. This 'policy' will finally put the death knell into albums!
Apparently, I've heard from several sources, that Amazon has done this before and then reversed it, but as the reader's comments suggest, Amazon is 'probably' just trying to 'encourage' us to subscribe to their streaming service. I wonder how many more years before we will not be able to buy music at all on Amazon (or anywhere else for that matter except direct from artist/labels) and will be 'forced' to stream it. Now what will be an interesting proposition enforced upon us! Amazon's bean counters have presumably worked out that it is more financially beneficial for THEM to rent music than to sell it. So in future if you want to listen to music you better make sure you have a good wi-fi reception wherever you are! .
'Tail wagging the dog' springs to mind. The only way to 'respond' to them is to stop buying music from Amazon and DON'T subscribe to Amazon Music Unlimited! Until now I have generally provided links on images to Amazon so you can go there to buy, until this decision is reversed I will now stop doing this. The artists/labels suffer, the consumer suffers and ONLY Amazon think that they may benefit from this decision if you subscribe to them so don't let them win and vote with your feet and buy elsewhere and don't subscribe!
Yet another UPDATE 17 Sep 2021
It would appear that Amazon UK has reinstated the grouping of album/EP tracks! .. so small mercies ... but I wonder if the samples will be reinstated .. watch this space!
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4 comments:
I also noticed this yesterday. Amazon have done this before, about a year ago for a couple of weeks before the samples magically returned.
If you're a subscriber to their Music Unlimited streaming service, you can go to the app and listen to the complete songs but that isn't the point.
I've bought hundreds, if not thousands of songs, by just listening to 30 second samples, so convenient and quick. It was also always possible to save songs you wanted to buy in the MP3 digital basket, and then buy them all together in batches, very convenient but again, this function disappeared without notice so now you have to buy them one by one.
Fingers crossed the samples come back but I'm not holding my breath. Amazon seems intent on pushing all its customers into its paid streaming services(rental music)at the expense of people who want simply to actually buy the music they love!
Thanks for your comment and 'well said'! Yes I also noticed (and will update the post) that it doesn't appear that you can buy 'albums' ... it looks like they've split all tracks into individual listings ... ridiculous as now if you want buy the full album you have to search for all the other tracks ... that's helpful! If I were an artist selling music on Amazon I certainly wouldn't be happy with this new 'policy' / decision and would be asking why and considering not using Amazon ... but there we have it ... Amazon know that in reality there is nowhere else to go so it's a case of their bat and ball so like it or lump it attitude. They will only reverse their decision if sales fall which they undoubtedly will. I refuse to pay for an Amazon Unlimited subscription as I want to buy and not stream music. I can stream for free on Spotify but appreciate that Spotify needs an income stream to enable them to pay streaming fees to artists!
Thanks for the reply. I've just been having a quick look on Amazon again and it seems, just like magic, music samples are now back! It's a bit patchy with some albums only showing certain track samples but several new release albums from today (17 Sept)include full 30 second song snippets. So, has some enlightened soul pressed a button again perhaps? Will it last? Who knows but one can hope common sense for music buyers and artists alike has been restored, for the moment.
By the way, thanks for all the time and effort you must put into this great blog, it's been my 'go to' source for new music for the last several months, together with Mark Merry's excellent Soul Sermon show on Starpoint Radio. Cheers!
Yes ... thanks for your message I'd only just noticed myself a matter of a few minutes ago. I must have been fed BS by the 'offshore' customer services and, as I originally thought, ... it was a technical issue after all?
I greatly appreciate your comments regarding the blog and am glad you like it. I've had some great feedback from many which is reassuring that I'm on the right track .. a labour of love! Watch this space as I have something in the pipeline with a very well respected 'face' on the UK soul scene which I should be able to announce possibly next week!
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