The iTunes Store is in the middle of an unlikely revival, as artists release albums exclusively on the platform to court superfans and lift their chart positions, the Financial Times first reported.
According to the report, Ariana Grande surprise-released a live version of Petal as an iTunes-only exclusive, and the album jumped from number 15 to number 6 on the charts after the announcement. Taylor Swift’s Life of a Showgirl earned more from physical and digital sales in its first US week than from streaming, while Charli XCX made the B-side songs of her album Music, Fashion, Film an iTunes exclusive.
The iTunes Store brought per-song digital sales to the mainstream, but streaming has since become the default way most people listen. Apple retired the iTunes desktop app in 2019 and replaced it with separate Music, Podcasts and TV apps, yet continues to market the store to labels, 9to5Mac notes. The Financial Times report is paywalled, so exact sales figures are not available. Industry experts are split on whether the exclusive-release strategy has staying power.