Apple Computer Inc. has sold 100 million songs on its iTunes Music Store, solidifying its position as the leading legal music download site, the maker of the iPod and Macintosh computer said Monday.
When Cupertino, California-based Apple launched the music store last April, Chief Executive and co-founder Steve Jobs set a goal of selling 100 million songs in one year.
The company missed that mark, however, selling more than 70 million songs in the first 12 months. Tracks cost 99 cents eachand can be played on Apple’s popular iPod and iPod mini digital music players as well as on either a Macintosh or Windows personal computer.
"iTunes quickly outpaced the competition and is far and away the world's number one online music service," Jobs said in a statement.
Apple, which reports third-quarter financial results on Wednesday, has already sold more than 3 million iPods, which range in cost from $249 to $499, depending on their capacity.
Apple has been selling virtually every iPod it has made, but it has a hard time keeping up with demand for the iPod mini. Hitachi, which makes the 1-inch 4-gigabyte hard drives for the iPod mini, is boosting production of the drives by the end of the year.
The iPod mini will be available internationally on July 24. Previously, Apple had said it would start selling the device internationally in April, but delayed the introduction because of tight supplies of the drives.
The 100 millionth song, "Somersault (Dangermouse remix)" by Zero7, was purchased on Sunday by Kevin Britten, 20, of Hays, Kansas. In accordance with a promotion Apple announced recently, Britten will receive a 17-inch PowerBook notebook computer, a 40-gigabyte iPod and a gift certificate for 10,000 iTunes songs.
Jobs himself telephoned Britten to congratulate him, an Apple spokeswoman said.
Last month, Apple launched the iTunes Music Store in Britain, France and Germany, selling more than 800,000 tracks in its first week.
