> Heck, why not have a metadata "db" (ala plex) instead of insisting that stuff be bundled on the media itself? Because that isn't portable and then a differen

> Heck, why not have a metadata "db" (ala plex) instead of insisting that stuff be bundled on the media itself? Because that isn't portable and then a different faction will be screaming "vendor lock-in". The metadata inside the media file itself is in a standard format that anybody can read, and storing it inside the file also ensures that it cannot become separated from the file it's belonging to. Besides, any reasonable kind of software involving any kind of media library will already be keeping its own metadata database (and that includes iTunes/Apple Music), because rescanning the whole library on each program startup would be ridiculously inefficient (all the more so historically when hard disks were more common). But it can't be the sole source of truth because see above – people who still keep a local library of music around might want their media file collection to be interoperable with other software, too.