iTunes’ share of the paid digital download market rose to 66.2% in the third quarter of 2010 from 63.2%, according to new data from the NPD research group (http://www.npd.com). Amazon’s share of the paid digital-download market rose to 13.3% in the third quarter, from 11% the year earlier,
Distribution executives at record labels say the disparity between the two may be even steeper, with Amazon commanding just 6% to 10% of the market in any given week, and Apple closer to 90%, notes the “Wall Street Journal” (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704073804576023913889536374.html?mod=rss_whats_news_technology&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+wsj%2Fxml%2Frss%2F3_7015+%28WSJ.com%3A+What%27s+News+Technology%29). Steep discounts are a cornerstone of Amazon’s strategy to gain traction in a market in which iTunes remains the dominant player, though a debate has arisen among music labels about whether such discounts risk undermining the value of their products, the article adds.