FAQs

How exactly does Islam On Demand work?
Islam On Demand is a legal and fully authorized service that allows you to purchase high quality Islamic lectures for immediate download to your computer or portable device. You don't actually download anything from this website. Islam On Demand is simply a portal that allows you to browse the titles that are available for purchase. The actual purchase is made from Apple's iTunes online store. To download, simply click on the "iTunes" button above any title and it will be loaded into the iTunes application on your computer or device (you must have the iTunes software installed). Note: It may take a few moments for your iTunes program to open, and it may open underneath this browser window. Once a title appears in the iTunes store, you can purchase it with a few easy clicks using your new or existing iTunes online account. When you complete your purchase and the download finishes, simply listen to the lecture on your computer, transfer it to your iPod or mp3 player, or burn it to a CD! You can also download the lectures directly to your portable device such as the iPhone or iPod Touch (iTouch) with no transferring or syncing necessary! For devices such as BlackBerry, Treo and others please see below.

What is iTunes?
iTunes is a software program developed by Apple that is used for playing and organizing digital audio and video files. It is available for both PC and Mac and can be downloaded for free by clicking here. The iTunes application also connects to the iTunes Store via the internet where the user can purchase and immediately download music, movies, TV shows and, of course, Islamic lectures! The iTunes online store is the most popular download service in the world! The iTunes software application comes pre-installed on the iPhone, iPod Touch (iTouch), all Macintosh computers and many PCs. It is extremely easy to use and works seamlessly with Apple's portable audio and video player, the iPod. iTunes is also compatible with many other portable mp3 players. For more information please visit Apple's website or keep reading the FAQs listed below.

How do I download a lecture from Islam On Demand?
You don't actually download anything from this website. Islam On Demand is simply a portal that allows you to browse the titles that are available for purchase. To download, simply click on the "iTunes" button above any title and it will be loaded into the iTunes application on your computer or device (you must have the iTunes software installed). After a few seconds, the title will appear in the iTunes application. Then download it directly from iTunes and listen to it on your computer, transfer it to your iPod or mp3 player, or burn it to a CD!

Which mp3 player is the best for downloading lectures from Islam On Demand?
iTunes is an Apple product, so naturally we would recommend Apple's iPod since it works seamlessly with iTunes (buy an iPod). However, there are many other mp3 players on the market that will work just fine with iTunes and Islam On Demand. For more information keep reading.

Can I download and listen to the lectures on my iPhone or iPod Touch (iTouch)?
Yes! iTunes comes pre-installed on all of Apple's portable devices such as the iPhone and iPod Touch (iTouch) and, therefore, the lectures can be downloaded directly and played on those devices assuming you have enough free memory to store the audio files.

Can I download and listen to the lectures on my BlackBerry, Treo, Microsoft's Zune or an mp3 player other than iPod?
With regard to other mp3 players or media devices, you can play the lectures one of two ways:

Option #1) The simple way is to get iTunes installed on the device and you can download the lectures directly. Contact the manufacturer of your device, visit their website or consult the user manual to see if iTunes is compatible with your device. Even if iTunes is compatible, many would choose Option #2 because they do not have the memory capacity on their hand-held device to store hours and hours of audio files.

Option #2) Download the lectures directly to your desktop computer or laptop using iTunes. Then transfer (or sync) the audio files within iTunes to your portable device. Each device can be connected to your computer but they all work differently. Contact the manufacturer of your device, visit their website or consult the user manual to see exactly how to do this. You can also refer to the iTunes support page or download free third-party software to sync your non-iPod mp3 player with iTunes: iTunes Sync or iTunes Agent.

What format are the downloaded audio files?
DRM-free AAC audio, which is compatible with most mp3 players on the market today.

Can I listen to the lectures if I don't own an iPod or mp3 player?
Yes, you can listen to it two ways:

1) Download the lectures to iTunes and listen to them from within the iTunes player through your computer's speakers.

2) Download the lectures to iTunes and burn them to a CD using iTunes. Your computer must be equiped with a CD burner. Then listen to the CD on any computer, portable or tabletop CD player, or car stereo CD player.

What is the price for each lecture? I see two prices listed on the iTunes store... an album price and an individual track price. Which one is correct?
Both are correct. The individual track price (99 cents in most cases) is the cost for downloading that one audio track only. The album price ($3.99 in most cases) is the cost for downloading the entire lecture (all the audio tracks for that album) with one-click. When you buy the album, you are getting the complete lecture from beginning to end. iTunes will download the entire lecture into your iTunes player one track at a time, starting with the first track. Once the first track is finished downloading, you can start listening to it immediately while the remaining tracks are downloaded in the background.

I clicked on the "iTunes" button and nothing happened! What's wrong?
Make sure iTunes is installed on your computer or portable device. To download it for free click here. If you already have iTunes installed and nothing is happening, hide or minimize all the open windows on your computer screen. The iTunes window sometimes appears underneath other windows and is therefore hidden from view. If that still does not solve the problem, you should consult the iTunes support page or contact the manufacturer of your computer or portable device. For portable devices such as BlackBerry, Treo and others please refer to the paragraph above.

Can I use Islam On Demand if I live outside the United States?
Islam On Demand has a distribution agreement with Apple iTunes in the following territories: United States, Canada, Europe, Japan, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand. If you live in these countries and are able to access the iTunes online store, you should be able to download our content by clicking on the appropriate links on this website. The downloaded audio files are universal DRM-free AAC audio and will play in the regions listed above assuming you are using a compatible mp3 player. Any other technical questions related to audio formats should be directed to Apple iTunes. If you live outside the countries listed above we cannot guarantee that you will be able to access our content through iTunes, although it may be possible.

Can I purchase Islam On Demand lectures on DVD or CD?
Many titles are sold on DVD and CD by MeccaCentric. Visit their website by clicking here or simply click on the "Buy Disc" link above any title on this website.

Can I copy the lectures and give them out to friends and family?
Please do not copy and distribute our content. Although you would be serving the cause of da'wah by spreading the message, you would be undermining our efforts of da'wah by reducing our financial support. Since we are dedicated to this effort full-time, we have no other source of income except through sales of downloads, DVDs and CDs and occasional donations. And since we spend thousands of dollars on production equipment, software, labor, rent and advertising, we need continued purchasing by you and others to maintain our operation. Please support Muslim production and distribution companies by purchasing, not pirating. If you want to share the message of Islam with other people, why not tell them about Islam On Demand or MeccaCentric and encourage them to buy directly from us? Furthermore, if you are interested in spreading the message, we can give you a generous discount for resale purposes or for charitable purposes.

Can I listen to a preview of each lecture before I buy?
Absolutely! You can do this two ways:

1) On this website simply click wherever it says "Preview" and you can view short video clips of the lecture.

2) When you click on the "iTunes" link for any lecture on this website, that title will be displayed within the iTunes store on your computer. Then simply double-click on the specific track and you will hear a 30 second audio preview. Make sure your speakers are connected, tuned on and the volume is up! Each and every track within iTunes has a unique 30 second preview.

Is Islam On Demand an authorized distributor?
Islam On Demand is a division of MeccaCentric, which is the original producer of all the lectures listed on this website. Essentially, Islam On Demand and MeccaCentric are one in the same, the former specializing in online distribution and the latter specializing in mail-order distribution. MeccaCentric has secured distribution agreements with each speaker and event organizer. All of the lectures we sell are original productions of MeccaCentric. None of the lectures have been pirated. And some speakers even receive royalties.

Where are the Hamza Yusuf lectures?
Unfortunately our distribution rights restrict us from selling Hamza Yusuf lectures through iTunes. However, we hope to offer downloads for his titles directly from the MeccaCentric website in the near future, insha' Allah. Until then, you can purchase his DVDs and CDs by clicking here.

How do you justify selling Islamic lectures? Isn't this haram?
MeccaCentric and Islam On Demand are organizations that provide a service, much like any other organization or company from which you may buy products or services. Our service is producing and providing for you high quality lectures and this service has many expenses which must be paid for. Even though we are a non-profit organization and we accept donations, we do not rely upon these donations to cover all of our costs, therefore selling is necessary. Furthermore, this effort of striving in the cause of Islam requires 100% of our time. Therefore it is our full-time job, not something we do in our spare time. We sell the lectures we record simply to help pay for the many expenses and to continue providing what we believe is a much-needed service. Your purchase helps to support our effort of da'wah and will contribute the continuation of this service in the future, insha' Allah. If someone is willing to guarantee payment for all our operating expenses on a perpetual basis, then we would immediately begin providing our content free of charge. Until then, we will solicit donations and sell our productions for a reasonable price.

Do you plan on adding new lectures to Islam On Demand?
Yes, insha' Allah. Currently we are focused on adding all of our existing content to the iTunes store. But as we record new lectures we will add those as well, insha' Allah. Please join our email list and you will be notified when new content is added.

Will you offer anything other than lectures such as Qur'an, nasheeds, podcasts, movies or documentaries?
Currently there is no plan to do so, as our niche is high quality Islamic lectures. However, we will always keep our options open for expanding into other genres.

Why do I have to go through iTunes? Why can't I just download the content directly from the Islam On Demand website?
Setting up such a service within this website would not be cost-effective for us. Furthermore, the technical support issues resulting from such an effort would be beyond the scope of our resources. In order to provide the most efficient, user-friendly, robust, and inexpensive service, we partnered with iTunes which is the most popular audio download service in the world. In the future, we may add our content to other providers such as eMusic, Napster, Rhapsody and others, insha' Allah.

Will iTunes work with PC or Mac?
Both.

Can I download the lectures in a video format?
Not currently. However we are working on that.

How do I cancel my subscription for automatic recurring donations?
If you subscribed to automatic recurring donations through PayPal, you can cancel your subscription at any time by following these instructions:

1) Go to the PayPal website and log in to your account.
2) Click "Profile" at the top of the page.
3) Click the "Recurring Payments" link in the Financial Information column.
4) Find the merchant whose agreement you want to cancel, and click the "View Payment" link.
5) Click the "Cancel" button and follow the online instructions.

(Canceled recurring payments cannot be reactivated)

I am interested in distributing the lectures. How can I do that?
You can purchase the DVDs and CDs for resale from MeccaCentric, the original producer of the lecture content. For more information, please refer to the wholesale section of their website.

Can I upload my own audio content to Islam On Demand?
No. All of our content is provided exclusively by the production company MeccaCentric. However, we are looking to hire freelance producers to record fresh content on our behalf. If you are interested in this click here.

I'm trying to burn an entire lecture to an audio CD but iTunes is saying it won't fit. What do I do?
Most audio CDs have a maximum capacity of 80 minutes. If you are attempting to burn a lecture that is longer than 80 minutes, you will get this error message. In this case, you will need to use your own discretion and divide the lecture into two parts by burning groups of tracks that are less than 80 minutes in length.

How do I contact Islam On Demand?
1-800-607-9810 (U.S. only)
703-738-3424
P.O. Box 6161, Springfield, VA 22150 USA
admin(at)islamondemand.com

Home Page