Euro iTMS Grand Prize: Tell a Friend to win

By Alun Williams

Posted on 2 Dec 2005 at 17:10

How can you win Apple's Euro iTMS Grand Prize - for purchasing the 100 millionth entry from a European iTunes Music Store - without making a purchase? This was the question we asked when noting that the first item in the Terms and Conditions was that no purchase was in fact necessary.

'The music fan who purchases the 100 millionth song in Europe will receive a prize that is just as dramatic and makes the digital music experience complete,' reads the promotional web page, but Apple has kindly pointed out that we could also "Tell a friend".

Rather than having to buy a music track for a chance to scoop the big prize promotion - a 17-inch iMac G5, a 30GB iPod and a 10,000-song Gift Card are up for grabs - you need only email a friend a track recommendation. This counts as an automatic entry.

The answer to our question lies plainly further down within the T & Cs.

Specifically, the How To Enter section reads: 'You will automatically be entered into the Promotion by: 1) downloading a song from iTunes (any music video downloads or any free downloads will be deemed an ineligible entry); or 2) a free alternative means of sending an e-mail to Sponsor at itunes100@euro.apple.com via the iTunes "Tell a Friend" feature (a song download or "Tell a Friend" e-mail will be deemed an "Entry(ies)"). The "Tell a Friend" feature can be easily accessed at iTunes by selecting a song, and clicking the "Tell a Friend" link that is displayed for that song. One Entry will be automatically submitted for each song downloaded or "Tell a Friend" e-mail sent.'

(The promotion begins on Friday 2 December at 6pm GMT ends with the downloading of the 100 millionth entry.)

So there you have it, friends can be so useful. And thanks to Apple for ploughing through the small print and clearing that one up for us.

But still, surely that means that the person who actually downloads the 100 millionth track might not win the prize. Enough!