Band Aid – good news and bad news
Ooh, bad move for iTunes in the UK. You may have already read about how iTunes is currently refusing to sell the new Band Aid single because it won’t charge the £1.49 that the charity wants. The company seems to be unwilling to change its policy of only charging 79p a track. While this is understandable in some ways (and the US reports offer a very different slant on the story than the UK ones), the company should be wary of upsetting the GB public over a charity that’s seen as part of British musical history. But upsetting the public will be the least of their worries if they upset Sir Bob – remember him confronting Thatcher over the VAT refund?
Meanwhile, Orange has just announced that the Band Aid 20 single has become the fastest selling Orange mobile phone download ever. The single can be downloaded by texting RINGTONE BANDAID to 247, visiting Orange World or from any Orange shop. It costs £3.50 in truetone, £2.00 in mono and £3.00 in polyphonic formats with "the company donating all proceeds to the Band Aid Trust, excluding VAT and production costs. Customers who buy a ringtone therefore donate £2.98 when buying a truetone, £1.70 for a mono or £2.55 for a polyphonic tone."
