On Friday, Engadget wrote about Ongo Bongo, a service that offers Netflix-style rentals of CDs for $22/month. They have some sort of initial offering where if you pay $264 up front for a year’s service, they’ll throw in an IPod mini.
This is proably a scam, and if it isn’t then it’s going to get carpet bombed by the music industry. It is illegal to rent CDs in the United States unless you are a non-profit. They appear to be trying to find a way around the law by setting up a system where they claim they are selling music but the return policy is so liberal that they are clearly in the rental business.
Q: Why would I join OB’s “music lovers” club?
A: Membership in OB’s “music lovers” club, carries special rewards for our members
one free CD (random selection) after 12 months of continuous membership
100% free shipping on all ‘software’ (CD) orders
unlimited ‘return credits’ for all ‘software’ (CD) orders
your first 4 CD purchases are included FREE in the annual membership cost
special limited time promotional offers available to “music lovers” club members only.
For the record, I think the ban on commercial renting of musical recordings is stoopid, but that’s the law and Ongo Bongo is likely to get smacked down by the RIAA long before you’d use 12 months of their service.