iTunes is becoming a monster. With the addition of movies and TV shows, they have become a more direct Amazon Who cares about owning the CD or DVD itself? Not too long ago, owning the actual disc was the commodity. Now the media file itself is the commodity. People are obsessed with obtaining music. I am guilty of it. I have 100 days worth of music. I have never listened to music for an entire day, let alone 100 straight days. But I have it, and the consumer in me loves it. If someone requests a song, bam, I got it. And, at 99 cents a pop, iTunes is a great way to fulfill the need to acquire something, without taxing your bank account too severely.

Bill Gates' clairvoyant article n seems to accurately depict the trend of consumption in our world. iTunes is just one of many examples we could use to illustrate a friction-free capitalist society. In high school, my parents gave me a Shell "speed pass." Not only did this little gizmo allow me to purchase gas with only a swipe, but it worked at McDonald's also. The speed pass heightened my generosity when it came to feeding my friends at McDonald's or with munchies from the gas station store. My parents received the astronomical monthly bill and revoked my speed pass privileges. Point is a friction-free purchasing environment will cause people to spend beyond their means.

Television and film portray friction-free spending. In any scene where people shop you never see them actually pay, it just cuts from the store to the person walking out with bags.

We talked about the possibility of integrating shopping and viewing. I think that system will be integrated into golf soon. Here's what I mean:
http://www.nike.com/nikegolf/swingportrait/
This is also an example of how producers of sport are trying to make real life seem more virtual.