@lindsay.at

Hey, has anyone else noticed that there has finally been a boost to the iTunes Plus library on Apple's iTunes store? I noticed while browsing the iTunes Wi-Fi music store, but confirmed it using the normal store.

There are some notable things about it:

• The independents have arrived: it's not a cluster of further EMI songs, but rather they appear to be from small labels.
• The per-track price of the iTunes Plus (DRM-free, 256kbps AAC) tracks are $.99, not the increased $1.29 price. See, for example, the new Iron & Wine album's listing. The album costs $9.99, but the individual tracks are still only $0.99.
• As of this writing, the FAQ has not yet been updated: it still says that "iTunes Plus songs are available at $1.29 per song."

Which came first, the agreement with the indies on the new price, or Amazon's MP3 store? From where I sit, this looks like a reaction to Amazon, which seems like a first for Apple with the iTunes store.

Oh, in case anyone is curious, but hasn't been following my Twitter feed, I got an iPod Touch last week. It's magnificent, and a delight to use. It's even more of a joy to demo it to my colleagues and friends around here. They're very impressed with the price (£199), as well.

So, when Joyent announced its referral programme, I signed up, because I've been experimenting with this monetisation thing on my blogs, and thought there was nothing to lose. As soon as I was approved for the programme, I went back and added links to an entry from the recent past. I checked on my account tonight, on a lark, and noticed I actually got a clickthrough commission.

The Google ads have been there from the start, and seem to have garnered some clicks as well. I get a (tiny) thrill when I check on that account and notice my running total go up. But, well, the numbers tell a story:

Google AdSense earnings to date: $0.58
Joyent Affiliate earnings to date: $209.85

Anyway, this is not meant to boast or gloat or drive more revenue. Perhaps it's even unwise to reveal such personal details. I just thought that it might be an interesting data point from a guy who gets page-views per day in the dozens (yes, if you're reading this, you are special). And I fully expect that the Joyent commission will be a one-off thing.

Still, it makes me reconsider the value of splashing ads all over my blogs. And if you sell high-value and/or high-volume products through the web, it seems like you could do far worse than enabling an affiliate programme through shareasale.com.

(Oh, and if you're the magical person who clicked through and bought that 3 Martini Lunch, step forward: I owe you (at least) a beer...)