United has added its name to the list of travel suppliers whose loyalty programs feature digital downloads as awards.
Following in the footsteps of Aeroplan and Priority Club Rewards, United has launched its MileagePlus Media Store where MileagePlus program members may redeem their miles for music, movie, and TV downloads.
Like iTunes and other download services, the Media Store allows users to search by artist or genre and preview tunes and videos.
While the music catalog appears pretty robust, the movie and TV offerings are much less so. According to United: “Certain movies are available now, and TV shows and additional movies become available later this year.”
As always with non-flight awards, the crucial question concerns value: What are your miles worth when redeemed for digital awards?
Based on a quick look through the available music tracks, the price for most individual tunes is 115 miles, with a scattering of 150-mile tunes.
Assuming the average value of a frequent flyer mile is around 1.2 cents, that amounts to paying $1.38 per tune.
That’s a fairly hefty premium over the $0.99 price for the majority of iTunes tracks. On the other hand, it seems that iTunes’ prices are increasingly pegged at $1.29, which makes United’s pricing much more palatable.
Reader Reality Check
Will you be redeeming your United miles for digital downloads?
This article originally appeared on FrequentFlier.com.
You Might Also Like:
- American Delivers Your Bags (For a Fee, of Course)
- Southwest’s Half-Priced Ticket Sale Backfires Badly
- Win a Trip for Two to Los Angeles
We hand-pick everything we recommend and select items through testing and reviews. Some products are sent to us free of charge with no incentive to offer a favorable review. We offer our unbiased opinions and do not accept compensation to review products. All items are in stock and prices are accurate at the time of publication. If you buy something through our links, we may earn a commission.
Related
Top Fares From
Today's Top Travel Deals
Brought to you by ShermansTravel
Kenya: 14-Night Tour, Incl. Tanzania &...
smarTours
vacation $7125+Last Minute: Top-Rated Hilton Hotels Across...
Hilton
hotel $132+7-Night Mexican Riviera Cruise in Winter,...
Princess Cruises
cruise $659+