Warner CEO: iTunes price increase led to lower sales, recession might also factor in

Don’t pat yourself on the back too much for calling this one, but Warner CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr. has now confirmed what many have suspected: higher iTunes pricing has led to slightly slower sales. Specifically, he says that while the variable pricing introduced early last year has been a “net positive” for the company, revenue growth on iTunes slowed to just eight percent in the last quarter, compared to a hefty 20 percent a year earlier. He is also quick to point out, however, that raising prices 30 percent during a recession may not have been the best idea in hindsight. Interestingly, Bronfman seems to think that e-books actually stand a better chance at holding to up to price increases than music, noting that the “book publishing industry, on the iPad, has much more flexibility than the music industry had.”