Music Services

There has never been a better year than this one to give the gift of digital music. You can choose to give gifts in the form of prepaid downloads so recipients can pick and choose what they want, or in the form of a prepaid subscription that will grant them access to more than a million songs for as long as the subscription lasts. To help you make the right decision, we've chosen the top five music services that provide music online, both on demand and streaming, as well as online MP3 services.

Editors' Note: Not all services offer gifts in the same form. Some may let you give a certain number of songs, while others may only sell subscriptions or may require you to leave your credit card on file. Please see each description below for details.

iTunes | Yahoo! Music Unlimited | Rhapsody | eMusic | Napster To Go

iTunes

If someone on your shopping list has (or will receive) Apple's iPod MP3 player, the service you'll probably want to go with is Apple's own iTunes. The service sells songs for 99 cents apiece, entire albums for $9.99, and videos for $1.99 (including music videos and TV shows like Desperate Housewives and Lost). Since iTunes lets you send paper or electronic gift certificates that can be redeemed for music, it's perhaps the easiest service to give as a gift. The program was already a favorite media jukebox among critics and casual users alike, and the new video overhaul adds plenty of value, especially when it comes to the new, fifth-generation video iPod.

This service is suggested for:
iPod owners (or soon-to-be iPod owners)

This service works best with:
Any iPod, iPod Shuffle, or iPod Nano

Price Range:
$0.99 per song, $9.99 per album

Available as:
Gift certificates, either paper or electronic

iTunes

Yahoo! Music Unlimited

As its name suggests, this music service from Yahoo! gives users who pay a subscription fee of $12 per month or $120 per year access to unlimited streams and downloads of the more than 1 million tracks in its music catalog--roughly the same number in Napster's and Rhapsody's. And like Napster To Go and Rhapsody, Yahoo!'s service lets you transfer subscription-based tracks to a compatible portable player. Yahoo! Music Unlimited offers streams and subscription-based downloads at a higher bit rate than Rhapsody or Napster, but it lacks the editorial and community aspects of those services.

This service is suggested for:
Users of Yahoo!'s other services and those who appreciate a good deal

This service works best with:
Creative Zen Micro, iRiver T line, Dell DJ line

Price Range:
$12 for a month, $120 per year

Available as:
No gift certificate options available (you'll need to enter your credit card info onto the presumably trusted recipient's computer)

Yahoo Music Unlimited

Rhapsody

Rhapsody is the only on-demand streaming music service that offers integration with several digital media receivers to stream music over a network to your home stereo. It offers roughly the same catalog as the other services but boasts the best music editorial content and offers both subscriptions and à la carte downloads. Lucky recipients of Rhapsody subscriptions will also get all sorts of streaming radio programs and access to celebrity playlists.

This service is suggested for:
Dedicated music fans

This service works best with:
Creative Zen Micro, iRiver H10

Price Range:
$14.99 per month, $180 for a year

Available as:
Multiple-month discounts / Individual Song Downloads

Rhapsody

eMusic

In the ever-changing pay-to-play market, liberal usage policies and fresh editorial content have kept eMusic afloat. Although the company no longer subscribes to the free-for-all frame of mind that dominated its early days, its users are still rewarded with unlimited playing, burning, and transferring of files provided in the nearly universally supported MP3 format (it's the only service on this list to offer unrestricted MP3s). Here's the catch: You must subscribe to one of three plans: choose 40 downloads for $9.99, 65 downloads for $14.99, or 90 downloads for $19.99.

This service is suggested for:
Listeners who enjoy the unrestricted MP3 format and independent music

This service works best with:
Any MP3 player (including the iPod)

Price Range:
$9.99-$19.99

Available as:
Gift subscription

eMusic

Napster To Go

After closing its doors in 2001 following an expensive bout with the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), then being acquired by software company Roxio in 2002, Napster relaunched itself as a legitimate Internet music service. Although Napster 3.0 bears only a slight resemblance to its outlaw ancestor, it includes an impressive number of music tracks--more than 1 million--from all four major labels and dozens of indies. Napster also offers an additional perk: You can discover new music by browsing other peoples' collections--just like in the old, outlaw days, but without the guilt.

This service is suggested for:
Music listeners who enjoy discovering music in a community setting

This service works best with:
Dell Pocket DJ, iRiver H10, Creative Zen Micro

Price Range:
$14.95 per month, $180 per year

Available as:
Gift certificate

Napster To Go