five.tv Register | Sign in
Suzi Perry

Suzi Perry

Presenter - The Gadget Show

View profile

Suzi's been with The Gadget Show since day one and is an avid tech fan, adding a touch of Gadget chic to our line up....

More

Vote: Napster vs iTunes

Monday 10 August

Music download sites don't get much bigger than Napster and iTunes. But which deserves entry to the Wall of Fame?

It’s music download sites this week for the Wall of Fame, and as fights go they don’t get much more heavyweight than this. It’s Napster versus iTunes. But which should be bestowed with the greatest accolade of all… entrance to the Wall of Fame.

In the red corner: Napster. A bit of a rebel it shook the music industry to its core and changed the way we thought about music for ever. Devised by an 18-year-old college student, Napster launched in 1999. It combined a music search function with a file-sharing system, which effectively meant you had access to all the music on all the hard drives of computers connected to Napster. It was bit dodgy, infringing on copyright law, and the music industry had it shut down in 2001. But Napster lives on in an online music store, and it’s the legacy of the original site that makes it so great.

In the blue corner: iTunes! Proclaiming to be the daddy of online music, iTunes is like having a massive music and video warehouse in your bedroom. It originally launched in 2001 as a digital music player before it converted to an online store. It makes transferring music to your iPod easy as! And it’s this simplicity that’s led to its dominance of the online music world with over four billion songs sold!

So, who’s the music maestro? Who’s the Beethoven of online music stores? And who’s the music mooch? The Victoria Beckham of song shops? Find out Jon’s verdict here. Disagree with Judge Jon? Have your say in the poll below…

User comments (23)

Leave a comment

Dan

Why not Spotify! THis is the true next generation of online music. Fact.

Report as inappropriate

This comment has been removed.

Haydon B

I have used Napster once or twice in the old days of it, and a soon as iTunes was on the PC I was hooked, it's clean, easy and legal and I want to keep it that was if iTunes was to close I would start buying CD's again.

Report as inappropriate
blazeicehockey

I choose Napster. I didn't want to sell my soul to the devil! I subscribe and download anything and everything, and listen to it till I get bored of it. - 'Buying music' is a thing of the past.

Report as inappropriate
Charlie Pecot

I like Napster better because of the pricing scheme. $5 will get you 5 songs AND free streaming for a month. There is NO free streaming on iTunes.

Report as inappropriate
tardisman

i think even tough itunes is perfected vision of napster it will still created by napster that's why naspster won

Report as inappropriate
-KyleG

I voted Napster, I dont like iTunes because they use DRM. I hate DRM...

Report as inappropriate

This comment has been removed.

This comment has been removed.

thegadgetman

itune is easily the most reconised and used music download site cent times and thats why i think it deserves its place the much coveted wall of fame

Report as inappropriate
TheGadgetman

itunes is one of if not the most known and loved music download sites.its quick and easy to use and is a well recognised for its wide availability in song and that is why i think it deserves its place on the holy grail of gadgets the wall of fame[not to long is it?]

Report as inappropriate
RichardUK

I don't mind iTunes losing to something better or more revolutionary but Napster was illegal and it didn't change the industry at all, now it is some rubbish worse than iTunes. Don't they think they should change it? I am losing faith with Jon's opinion. He gives iPhone 4 star and then an equally or less flawless cooker 5 and now this.

Report as inappropriate
AlexFR

Living in France i can't use Napster's streaming feature, And Itunes music prices is expensive, So i started using spotify, I must say the service is very good, And it has all the new songs.

Report as inappropriate
Eggnog

1 fundamental problem with itunes. U must use an ipod hens y france are moving to ban it unless apple open it up to all mp3 players, and its a borowd concept that apple got from napster.

Report as inappropriate
Hentheden

Why isn't it spotify vs itunes?

Report as inappropriate
ralph11

itunes is the best but i have never had one :) :(

Report as inappropriate

This comment has been removed.

Veronica

I love using iTunes but I suppose Napster was the first so it deserves to win.

Report as inappropriate
ipodtouch

i love iTunes (although I'm not gonna use it fully until christmas) and apple rules :) but napster is good so both should have won :)

Report as inappropriate
Garabandal

i tunes is one big lag on vista! dnt Apple they care about us users? think about how much custom they are losing because of it?!

Report as inappropriate
Gruffdan

neither, they both suck

Report as inappropriate
Sharn

Definately NOT iTunes as someone just hacked it this week and charged £250 of downloads to my ccard. From reading other forums Apple have been aware of this for a long time. Please Gadget Show warn other viewers that iTunes is not secure.

Report as inappropriate
Goldviper3000

im bored and i think that xbox is better than both

Report as inappropriate

Join FiveFWD

Creating an account is free, will only take a few moments and will allow you to enjoy the full benefits of FiveFWD:

  • Create lists of your most wanted and owned products
  • Leave comments on articles without signing in
  • Get updated with all the latest gadget and car news

Leave a comment

Please note that we will not expose your email, but we might use it to email you back. Links may be included in your comments but HTML is not permitted.
* mandatory field

 
 
 
 
Jason Bradbury

Jason has been on The Gadget Show since day one. Before he joined us, he could be seen popping up on The Big Breakfast, hosting The Web Review for ...

Profile

Suzi Perry

Suzi's been with The Gadget Show since day one and is an avid tech fan, adding a touch of Gadget chic to our line up. Her main gadget love is photo...

Profile

Jon Bentley

Jon Bentley’s career has been dominated by two passions – cars and technology. The addiction to cars led to his first job, at the European hea...

Profile

Ortis Deley

Ortis has been obsessed with all things gadget-esque since he was a kid when he was a massive sci-fi movie fan. In more recent years, he has been a...

Profile

Dionne South

Dionne has been a life long gadget and gaming fan. She's been on the team at the Gadget Show almost since the very beginning and quickly became an ...

Profile

Monday 22 March at 8pm five

The Gadget Show tests the latest gadgets and technology and tells you, the viewers exactly what kit to buy. We also value your comments and feedback.

For Gadget Show website queries email the studio

For any other enquiries or complaints – email our customer services department