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TIME chose Apple's iTunes Music Store as the coolest invention of 2003 [Nov. 17]. But a service that revolutionizes the way people buy and listen to music deserves more: it should be called the invention of the decade. A Mac computer running iTunes has already replaced my $1,000 CD player. Hooked up to my stereo system at home, iTunes is as much a revolution as the portable iPod music player is on the road. Isn't it only a matter of time before Apple releases its own iTunes-based CD player? ED FIRMAGE JR. Salt Lake City, Utah
I applaud your choice of the iTunes Music Store. As someone who works on the front line of music retailing (where I have seen firsthand the decline of CD sales) and also behind the scenes at a 1,500-seat performance venue (where musicians who hit the road make and keep more money than they do from record sales), I can honestly say that the music industry has this choice: change or die. Kudos to Steve Jobs and Apple for rewriting the rules and bridging the gap between piracy and the legitimate downloading of music. If that bridge happens to be lined with Apple iPods, so be it. SARAH FITZGERALD Portland, Ore.
Ford and High Fashion
In "Bowing Out," you reported on the departure of pre-eminent fashion designer Tom Ford and his business partner from the Gucci Group [Nov. 17]. But if Ford is looking for new challenges, the makers of America's big, dark, ugly, gas-guzzling luxury sport-utility vehicles might offer him an excellent opportunity to branch out. Tom Ford would be the perfect choice to redesign the SUV line for Ford Motor Co. CAROLE WADE Los Angeles