iPod Prices Reduced in Canada After Levy Decision (UPDATE)
First on TMO - iPod Prices Reduced in Canada After Levy Decision (UPDATE)
by , 9:10 AM EST, December 22nd, 2004
Apple Computer, along with Canadian retailers Future Shop and Best Buy, lowered the price of all Apple iPod digital media players by between US$12 and $20 Wednesday in response to a recent federal court ruling throwing out a levy on hard drive-based devices sold in Canada.
Prices were cut by $25 Canadian (US$20.26) for 20 gigabyte (GB) and 40GB iPod models, and $15 Canadian (US$12.16) for the 4GB iPod Mini. As a result, Apple 40GB iPod Photo is now priced at $649.99 Canadian, $399 Canadian for the 20GB iPod, $529 Canadian for the 40GB iPod model, and $329 Canadian for the iPod mini.
The prices were changed early Wednesday on Apple's online store, as well as the online store for Future Shop.
The Federal Court of Appeal of Canada ruled Dec. 17 that the Copyright Board of Canada had no jurisdiction to impose a levy on digital media devices. In December 2003, the Copyright Board of Canada set a levy on hard drive-based players of $2 Canadian for each recorder with a memory capacity up to 1GB, $15 Canadian for each recorder over 1GB, and $25 Canadian for each recorder with over 10GB of storage capacity.
Lori DeCou, Director of Corporate Communications for Future Shop and Best Buy, told The Mac Observer Wednesday the price reduction was passed along to their customers directly from Apple, who previously was paying the levy.
While the decision will reduce prices of all hard drive-based players sold in Canada, industry experts believe music artists will pay the price in lower royalites while illegal music sharing is still rampant worldwide.
Future Shop is owned by American-based Best Buy Co., Inc.. Future Shop operates more than 100 stores in Canada. Best Buy operates 30 stores in five provinces.
Observer Comments
Comments are currently closed. Please email the author instead.
Recent Headlines - Updated November 22nd
- Fri, 7:07 PM
- Games - Soccer Sim Championship Manager 2010 Released for Mac
- 6:47 PM
- Games - EA Publishes Original Monopoly for iPhone
- 6:15 PM
- News - Original Apple I on Ebay for $50K, w/Letter from Steve Jobs
- 6:11 PM
- Games - New iPhone Games: Secret of the Lost Cavern Ep 1, New DJ Nights, More
- 5:47 PM
- Games - Star Trek D-A-C Game Headed to the Mac Next Month
- 4:57 PM
- Product News - TidBITS Releases “Take Control of Syncing Data in Snow Leopard”
- 4:26 PM
- John Martellaro's Blog - Particle Debris (week ending 11/20) Stationery Pads Go Poof
- 2:59 PM
- Free on iTunes - Musée du Louvre, Art Lite, SketchBook Mobile X and More.
- 1:50 PM
- Deal Brothers - Acer P215H bmid 21.5” Widescreen LCD Monitor: $139.99
- 11:24 AM
- TMO Appearances - Jeff Gamet Shares More Holiday Gift Ideas on MacJury
- 10:43 AM
- Product News - Cocktail 4.5 for Leopard Adds QuickLook Cache Clearing
- 10:06 AM
- News - Hack Enables Mac OS X 10.6.2 on Netbooks
The Mac Observer Reader Specials
- TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com
OWC: Get the Right Memory for Your Mac Top Quality, Competitive Price, Lifetime Backed Free Expert Support + Installation Videos too! MacBook & mini 8GB, iMac 16GB, Mac Pro up to 32GB. Click here
If you're using a Mac, then you've gotta check out Full Tilt Poker for Mac. This Full Tilt Poker bonus code does the unthinkable, it actually rewards!For the latest Apple products use Ciao, a price comparison website, to find laptops like MacBook Air. Then find the best prices on MP3 players and use our comparison tool to evaluate mobile phones like the Apple iPhone.
Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

