How often to you find out after the fact that your favorite artist has a new release? Or, that their music video is out and you're clueless about it? And you call yourself a fan?

iTunes to the rescue. They just started offering iTunes Passes. For one price, you get a selection of products from your favorite artist: songs, videos, albums and exclusive Pass content, for a set period of time. When you purchase a Pass, you'll get caught up with everything currently available for that artist in the Pass, plus new items as soon as they're available to iTunes.

According to Apple, the purchase price will not exceed the fair market value of the individual items. It doesn't say if there is any discount by getting a Pass.

So, is a grab-bag of songs and videos worth it? It's not an all-you-can-eat concept — you only get what Apple "hand-picks" for the Pass. A total-access pass to everything from my favorite artist is appealing; this, not-so-much. Right now, the iTunes Pass is only available for Depeche Mode for $18.99. Not really worth it in my book.

iLounge