Apple cuts iPod prices in Canada

Apple has cut the prices of the fifth-generation iPod sold in Canada. The 30GB iPod video, which was CAD$379, is now $30 less at $349, while the 60GB iPod video model is now $459, a $40 cut from the original $499 price tag. The newly updated special edition U2 iPod, also based on the fifth-generation design, sells for $379. According to iLounge, the price drop is an apparent response to changes in international currency exchange rates. The report notes that the iPod nano and iPod shuffle pricing remain unchanged.

iPod surpasses beer in college survey

Apple may have done what some thought was virtually impossible: displace beer drinking as the most popular thing on college campuses. The company's wildly popular iPod has surpassed beer drinking as the most "in" thing among undergraduate college students, according to the latest biannual market research study by Student Monitor. Only once before has that ever been done in the history of the 18-year old annual survey. The AP reports that 73 percent, of 1,200 students surveyed said iPods were "in" -- more than any other item and a signficant increase from last year; the list also included text messaging, bar hopping and downloading music. The same study conducted in 2005 found that only 59 percent of students named the iPod as the "in" thing--well below traditionally popular alcholor-related activities, according to the report. Facebook.com, a social networking Web site, was tied with beer drinking for the No. 2 spot on the survey, with 71 percent of students' votes. The only other time beer drinking was displaced was in 1997 when more students said that the Internet was the "in" thing.

BPI urges Apple to open iTunes DRM...

Apple's iTunes Music Store is drawing more fire overseas. The British Phonographic Institute has asked Apple to make its iTunes DRM (Digital Rights Management) compatible with other music players, according to The Register. The request comes just one day after a consumer advocate group won a preliminary ruling that could force the Cupertino-based company to change its iTunes terms of service in Norway. "We will not sue you for filling your iPod with music you have bought yourself," said BPI Chairman Peter Jamieson. "Traditionally the recording industry has turned a blind eye to private copying and has used the strength of the law to pursue commercial pirates."

Columnist expects iTunes subscriptions...

One columnist believes Apple will soon debut an iTunes subscription service that would allow customers to download unlimited amounts of music for a flat monthly fee. James Kim of CNET's MP3 Insider points to competition as the driving factor that will push Apple to offer music, and possibly video subscription services, as a medium for consumers to get the content they want. "Imagine a subscription-enabled iTunes 7 with all-you-can-stream access to more than 3 million tracks for $10 month," Kim suggests. "You'd also be able to compile playlists manually or automatically using a mix of your own songs and the entire iTunes catalog. You could actually fill up a 60GB iPod with the click of a button."