I have always hoped that marketplaces such as iTunes, Google Play, Steam etc. are something that will only be necessary until consumers get used to buying stuff online.
A better future is one where each content producer would just publish meta data in an open format that others could redistribute. In the meta data there would be a link to a web service using a standard format for buying/downloading the content.
Publishers could provide affiliate programs as an incentive for creating innovative ways of distributing the content. There would still be room for iTunes as an aggregator or a service for payment/downloading, but we would not rely on a few gatekeepers for our content. By providing the meta data in an open format it will enable anyone to distribute content. We could have a "Hacker Movies" where people submit movies and vote them up or other possibilities that would be up to others to imagine.
A better future is one where each content producer would just publish meta data in an open format that others could redistribute. In the meta data there would be a link to a web service using a standard format for buying/downloading the content.
Publishers could provide affiliate programs as an incentive for creating innovative ways of distributing the content. There would still be room for iTunes as an aggregator or a service for payment/downloading, but we would not rely on a few gatekeepers for our content. By providing the meta data in an open format it will enable anyone to distribute content. We could have a "Hacker Movies" where people submit movies and vote them up or other possibilities that would be up to others to imagine.