According to Digitial Music News, eight years and almost as many strategies later, Walmart is closing their MP3 Music Download store its $0.88 tracks in the face of insurmountable competition from Apple’s iTunes and associated devices like iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.

“After eight years in business, the Walmart Music Downloads Store located at mp3.walmart.com will close on August 28, 2011. All content in the Store will be disabled and no longer available for download from the store.

“The sale of physical record music products on Walmart.com as well as in Walmart US retail stores will remain unaffected. Walmart Soundcheck (soundcheck.walmart.com) will remain operational as a live streaming site without any download options.”

They’ll keep the DRM servers running for customers who purchased WMA music before Walmart switched to unprotected MP3.

Still, Walmart gets added to Yahoo! Music Unlimited, MTV URGE, AOL MusicNow, MusicMatch Jukebox, and growing list of others to exist the music download business. Which is unfortunate because iTunes needs rivals, and not just subscription services like Rdio, Spotify, Zune, Slacker, Pandora, etc., or music lockers like Amazon Cloud or Google Music Beta.

Amazon MP3 is still going strong, though Amazon has failed to grow the service internationally, and has yet to begin offering associated devices of their own, like their much-rumored Android-based tablet. Is the age of downloadable music, outside of iTunes, simply coming to an end?

[Digital Music News]

Walmart has announced that it will be carrying the Verizon iPhone 4 in its retail stores all across America starting tomorrow on launch day. They will be selling the device in roughly 600 of their retail stores and will also have many accessories to get you started and out the door with a brand new Verizon iPhone. Gary Severson, senior vice president, Home Entertainment, Walmart U.S. said:

We’re excited to bring iPhone 4 on the Verizon Wireless network, one the most anticipated mobile phone launches in recent history, to Walmart customers. As customers continue to embrace smart phone technology, we’ve added nearly 20 smart phone models to our assortment, including the new Verizon Wireless iPhone 4.

So if your nearest Walmart is closer than the Verizon store you can now save yourself the drive and check out your neighborhood Walmart first. I would recommend calling the store prior though to ensure they will indeed be carrying the Verizon iPhone at your store before skipping the Verizon store if you want yours in hand tomorrow. Let us know your plans for tomorrow and if you will utilize Walmart now instead!

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iPad origins, how big can the market get, Target, Amazon, and Walmart oh my, limera1n causes some pain, and Marc Edwards joins us from Bjango. It’s 10/10/10 folks and this is iPad live!

Credits

Thanks to the the iPhone Blog Store for sponsoring the podcast, and to everyone who showed up for the live chat!

iPads seem to be cropping up in a few Walmart stores a little ahead of schedule. Target and Amazon recently started carrying iPads and it wasn’t long before we started hearing Walmart iPad rumors. It became official when Walmart announced an iPad event. With all these new retailers carrying new iDevices, it seems Apple is ramping themselves up to take advantage of holiday sales. I live in an area where the closest Apple store is over an hour away, so being able to stop into one of our local stores is always a welcome option. Now that we have not only Apple – but Best Buy, Target, Amazon, and Walmart selling iPads, they should be a lot more accessible to many more people.

Walmart employees seem to have gotten overly excited and placed a few iPads on shelves ahead of the official launch. The pic above was sent to TUAW from one of their readers. Anyone else seeing iPads crop up at their local Walmart a little ahead of schedule? If you see some, send your pics our way!

[via TUAW]

We’ve known iPad is coming to Walmart for a long while now but it looks like next week it will finally arrive. Following on the heels of Target and Amazon — and Apple Online and Apple Retail — if Apple can meet demand that’s a huge retail footprint for iPad this holiday season.

And I’m starting to run out of 7-Eleven and QuickyMart jokes about where it will show up next, so if you have any ideas drop them in the comments.

[MacRumors]

With just two weeks to go before WWDC, Boy Genius Report is reporting that Apple has ceased shipments of the iPhone 3G to AT&T stores. Now throw in the fact that new orders for the device are not being accepted and it’s a pretty good sign the iPhone 3G’s days are numbered.

“Could this mean we might see the iPhone 3GS drop to $99 and make way for a new model? Or maybe the 3GS would disappear altogether? We’re not sure, but we’re about to find out.”

It’s a funny thing that BGR mentioned the price drop of the iPhone 3GS because as of today Walmart is dropping the price of the 16GB version to $97 with a two year service agreement. It appears as if the iPhone 3GS is about to replace the iPhone 3G as the budget iPhone. Keep an eye out for Apple to drop their price in two weeks…

[BGR]

Now they don’t celebrate Boxing Day in the US (think Black Friday the day after Xmas), but it seems no one told AT&T! Why else would the carrier race Walmart to the bottom and offer $99 iPhone’s: 8GB refurbs (and $199 16GB refurbs as well!) according to Engadget.

Since those rumors of Walmart selling them that cheap didn’t pan out (according to BGR, they’ll be putting them on sale — new — for a couple bucks below retail on Sunday), and you still haven’t gotten an iPhone (or several) of your very own, will this finally get you to take the plunge?

(Thanks to KurtLyon for the tip!)

No offense to any Wal Mart shoppers out there, but please Apple, say this is not so. The Radio Shack scare was bad enough, now you are threatening to bring the iPhone 3G to Walmart?

iPhone lovers really dodged a bullet when the Radio Shack deal fell apart but now Boy Genius is reporting that you will start seeing the Apple product in all Walmart stores as early as next month.

“Walmart will begin selling the iPhone 3G next month – on November 15th to be exact”.

Keep in mind that this is just in time for the holiday shopping season. I’m not even sure Walmart sells any cell phones, but the last place I’d go to buy my Palm Treo Pro, iPhone 3G, or Touch HD — wishful thinking I know — is Wal Mart! Also keep in mind you can not walk out of a store without activating the iPhone 3G. How comfortable would you be letting a Walmart employee handle your prized possession?

Sound off in the comments…

[Via Boy Genius Report]