Error Message

• The error message for Error (-50) only occurs after attempting to download purchased music or video files from the Apple iTunes store. This iTunes unknown error will cause a prompt to appear stating "There was an error downloading your purchased music. An unknown error occurred (-50)." The download will fail at this point.
  
  

Meaning

• Error (-50) means that the Apple iTunes software or player experienced a connection timeout while attempting to download the content file from the iTunes store. A connection timeout occurs when the server does not respond after a certain amount of time. The download fails because the server is not sending file data to the computer or player.
  
  

Causes

• This iTunes unknown error can be caused by any program that alters or monitors data being sent or received from the computer. These programs can either slow down the data transfer rate low enough to cause a connection timeout or completely block the transmission from the Apple iTunes store. The most common programs to cause this are ad filters, firewalls, virus protection and Web accelerator software.
  
  

Resolution

• Error (-50) will usually be caused by software other than iTunes, which means the method to resolve this issue will vary based on the program causing the problem. The general resolution will be the same for each program. The user needs to create an exception for the iTunes store to prevent the program from interfering with the transmission. This requires creating exceptions for the iTunes.apple.com, ax.itunes.apple.com, albert.apple.com and gs.apple.com Web addresses. Most people will need to consult the manual or developer of that software for the exact steps to reconfigure that software.
  
  

Video File Resolution

• This iTunes unknown error can occasionally occur for video files, even if there is no other program causing problems. This issue can be resolved by deleting the cache files for the original failed download attempt. Go to the directory that contains the video files for iTunes. Delete the ".tmp" file for the video you attempted to download. You should be able to re-download the file again without Error (-50) occurring.