(Image courtesy of AppleInsider)

Introduced last year with some degree of fanfare, it turns out that the iTunes LP format was actually a concept by the record labels to sell more complete albums -- but things haven’t quite worked out the way they wanted.

After six months, the iTunes LP format has appealed mostly to music enthusiasts and not most average Joes (and Josephines) who use Apple’s music store the most, according to AppleInsider. Intended to help “stimulate sales of full-length albums,” the format -- originally code-named “Cocktail” -- has thus far failed to stem the tide of consumers buying single songs, despite the bonus content, liner notes and more.

As it turns out, the record labels have no one to blame but themselves: Sources have told GigaOM that the original iTunes LP concept was actually theirs and not Apple’s. In order to get the entire iTunes Store DRM-free (at least for music, anyway), Cupertino went along with the record labels’ new format idea, which they saw as a way to push consumers back into buying full albums instead of single songs.

But with only 29 iTunes LP albums available after six months, the format appears to be somewhat of a failure with consumers, although sources claim the original slate of releases were indeed profitable thanks to Apple’s promotion -- despite a rumored $60,000 cost to launch the original set of albums.

However, those costs have fallen thanks to Apple introducing a developer kit for iTunes LP at the end of last year, which now opens the door to independent artists. But is it too little, too late?

"As it turns out, most artists and labels are pursuing a different avenue for their digital goodies: iTunes’ wildly popular App Store," GigaOM’s Paul Bonanos writes. "Numerous artists have released lyrics, videos and other content in both free and paid apps, which also serve as channels for artist news and can be updated with new content anytime."

For their part, Apple helped push the format with a free “Holiday Sampler” of 20 Christmas songs back in December and also added iTunes LP support to Apple TV. The format will also work on the iPad when it goes on sale April 3, which may help to introduce it to a new base of customers.