INT Student Downloads 100-millionth iTunes Song
Posted Monday, July 19, 2004

July 14, 2004
By JOSEPH GALANTE
Hays Daily News

It was a pretty typical night for a 20-year-old college student on summer break. Stay up late, download some songs.

What Kevin Britten didn't know early Monday morning was that he was about to download the 100-millionth purchased song on iTunes.

In fact, Britten didn't even know he had done so until a few minutes later when the phone rang and his dad told him a guy named Steve Jobs, (chief executive of Apple Computer and Pixar), was on the line.

“I really didn't know what to think,” Britten said, “and I answered it and he was on there.”

Jobs, who called from California, congratulated him for being the 100-millionth downloader and told Britten he had won a 17-inch PowerBook, a 40GB iPod and a gift certificate for 10,000 iTunes songs.

“I thought it was cool,” Britten said. “I didn't know which to be excited for — a call from Steve Jobs or winning the contest.”

After the five-minute telephone conversation, Britten woke up his mom and told his parents what happened.

“Then I started calling all my friends,” Britten said. “It was exciting.”

Apple Computer introduced the market-leading iTunes music store in April 2003 as a way to legally download songs. Members can download a song for 99 cents or buy an album for $9.99.

Britten, a web development major at Fort Hays State University, downloaded the winning song “Somersault” (Dangermouse remix) off of the Zero7 EP album at 12:21 a.m. Monday, according to the iTunes Web site.

Britten had other Zero7 albums, but not the one with Somersault on it. The song was on a list of ones he'd been wanting to download.

On Tuesday, Britten sat in front of his 17-inch iMac desktop in his room looking at different articles written about his famous download, which Jobs hailed as a benchmarch for the iTunes Music Store.

Since Sunday, Britten's given interviews to the Wall Street Journal, Reuters, the San Francisco Chronicle and a radio talk-show program in Dallas.

Typing the words “iTunes” and “Britten” on google.com returned articles naming Britten by CNN, MSNBC, MTV, the Investor's Business Daily and Canadian and Irish newswires.

“Best dollar I ever spent,” Britten said as he closed the browser windows.

Britten used to use Napster and Limewire to download songs, but switched to iTunes because it was much faster. The music industry lawsuits against illegal downloaders “was just an added reason to quit,” he said.

Britten considers himself a pretty modest downloader and has about 200 songs in his playlist right now. He doesn't know when he'll get his prizes, but is looking forward to replacing his two-year-old 10GB iPod that is full.

In the meantime, Britten plans to start compiling a playlist and will join the other 92 celebrities, such as Tom Petty, Barry Manilow and Adam Sandler, who have posted their favorite songs online.

Britten's not sure which songs will go on the playlist, but it might include some John Mayer, who he likes listening to.

“I only know I'll put the one I won. That's given,” Britten said. “It's gonna be a tough call.”

Joseph Galante is a news intern for The Hays Daily News and can be reached at (785) 628-1081, ext. 139, or by e-mail at jgalante@dailynews.net.