Universal Music Group's decision not to sign a long-term contract with iTunes has been seen by some as an indication that UMG is seeking an upper hand in its goal for variable pricing at iTunes. Jupiter's David Card wrote at his blog that variable pricing will be good, but the time is not right.

"There are at least two sides to this story. My Jupiter colleague Mark Mulligan is more excited by variable pricing than I am, but it is inevitable, and will eventually be a good thing for the market(place) -- digital distribution allows the fluidity to match supply with demand better than physical distribution. But Apple has a point, too -- it's still relatively early in digital music, and simplicity is an easier selling point. That, and the ability to even buy singles, which, though scary to artists and labels raised on album-oriented rock, is probably the natural order of pop music. And our surveys still suggest 99 cents is a still a sweet spot."

Without market research to back up my belief, I'm of the opinion that consumers are ready for variable pricing. If they can navigate the iTunes installation process, consumers are ready for a world in which not all songs have the same price. (It some research I've seen, consumers say price takes a back seat to convenience when buying digital music. If the purchase process is convenient, I think variable pricing will be good for digital music. Besides, sales are slowing and could use a kick in the pants.) Labels' attachment to the album format may even wane if prices for single tracks increase in singles-dominated genres like hip hop and pop.