Given that all the new technological gizmos (almost) always arrive in Japan months before anywhere else, it seems amazing that it is only now getting an iTunes store, writes James Sturcke. Can it really be that shoppers in over a dozen countries have had up to two years' head start and the chance to download 500m tracks before the Japanese get a look in the door?
Apparently so. But not any longer now that Apple has opened an iTunes store in Japan. The Californian company is charging 135 yen (68p) for 90% of its music and 200 yen for the rest, undercutting the 210 yen per track charged by Sony's Mora equivalent.
Analysts have said that the lack of an iTunes store aimed at Japanese users was a major reason behind Sony securing the top market share there for flash memory based players in recent months, ahead of the iPod shuffle.
The new store has sparked an ecstatic response from international customers after the latest Japanese beat combos. But they may be disappointed. As in Apple's other iTunes stores, you will need a credit card registered in that country to buy music.
