Why stream music when you can own it? I don't get these streaming music services.

Because paying $10 to listen to as many new albums as you want each month is a lot more affordable than buying a single album for that price?

I've been subscribing to Google Play Music for a couple years now, and it's been great. I still buy physical copies of albums that I really love or that aren't available on the service.

Well , why paying 10$ while I have Deezer for free...
But I guess Apple will make money from this service as well :-)

They're a bit late to the game here. Spotify kind of has a stranglehold on that particular market currently. I mean Apple's huge, but when I already get pretty much any album I want on Spotify for a cheaper price, why bother?

Yea and so is spotify on tablets. Transferred the installer to my phone and voila, free spotify. Spotifys 99 cents for 3 months deal sound enticing though to up the sound quality to 320kbps. Ill stick with physical copies when I want spend money an album.

I'm already a paying Spotify customer, so the idea that this will combine my local iTunes library and streaming in one (probably) solid app is pretty enticing. I'm definitely thinking of switching as long as there's a student discount like for Spotify.

^ what beachdude said [2]

It's not looking like a student discount is likely, I think Apple's hoping the family discount takes care of that. Damn, now I don't know.

Looks interesting. Using Deezer right now but we'll see what benefits Apple can offer for iPhone users in particular (connection with the ipod-App)?

Eh fuck this

[2]

Someone announces a new music streaming service everyday. Can we move on to the next thing, please.

don't really care for that weeknd song...it's alright but nothing special

"the hills" was pretty sweet tho

So it's a ripoff of spotify

really dont like how this news was presented here

see you guys later, going to read about the Tool + Mastodon supergroup again

@NakedSnake - problem is, is that streaming IS the new thing. Was reading a journal recently about the huge surge in demand for streaming services recently (i.e. streaming has, over the last few years, become the dominant form of music acquisition by a significant margin). Hence, numerous companies are attempting to make a splash in what is not only a lucrative new enterprise, but also one that could spell the end of any musically focused company were they not to become involved sooner rather than later. Whether this venture will prove successful for Apple is obviously unclear (particularly to someone like me who doesn't have the slightest clue about the workings of business/economic etc.) but I wouldn't disregard Apple's capacity -- as the largest music-centric business in the world -- to successfully manoeuvre itself into an advantageous position over the next couple of years.

Also idk about you guys but I thought the song was pretty decent

song wasn't that great, more kiss land junk.

guess he's not making any more 7 minute experimental r&b tracks like gone anymore

Most people that buy Apple products for the simple to use and shiny products will probably love a service that gives all the music they want for only the price of one album a month (even cheaper considering most albums are now about $10-14 due to additional songs/videos etc...) and will probably have a very well made app tied in with a new iOS. Plus, 3 months of free service isn't a bad start to get the hype train moving.

If people are willing to buy super expensive products and not buy a cheap service in the same vain as Netflix, I would be surprised. Also, it has the Apple logo with it so the name comes with the product. Honestly, I'm completely surprised they haven't done this sooner since they've originally been music focused before all the movies/tv shows etc.

ehh fuck apple products

Hey guys lets start pushing/weighing in on Spotify so that they don't have a free music account level, and then lets go and release our own service that's paid.

Not a huge Apple fan already, won't be using this.

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20150504/10043430886/apple-trying-to-kill-off-spotifys-free-tier-doj-now-investigating-antitrust.shtml

Apple trying to get people to pay for music. what a terrible company.

Seriously, everyone pays $8 for netflix and $texas for cable/internet, what is the big fucking deal with paying $10/month for music?

best Apple product is still a delicious apple pie. No stupid streaming service is gonna change that

I (mostly) pirate music, go to shows and buy merch.
Fuck Apple Music and Spotify.

Also, fuck streaming unless I have Wi-Fi. I have to use my data to watch porn and cat videos (separately?), not to browse a limited catalogue of music.

You can save streaming songs for offline play though

I don't think we're really the core audience for this sort of thing... this is going to be marketed heavily to the mainstream music consumer who just wants all their music in one place and a convenient service. I think they'll be at least somewhat successful in that regard.

the weeknd is just turrible

will not use unless it has last.fm integration like spotify

'You can save streaming songs for offline play though'

That's pretty cool. Still not sold. I think you're correct about us not being their target customers.

If the end of the page is to be believed they're just tying this into iTunes, which means PC playback will be frustrating at best and dog shit at worst; kinda wish they'd have made this a separate player.

The question is how many people will Apple reach who A) aren't using a streaming service yet and B) persuading those who are happy with Spotify/Pandora/etc to switch to Apple's service.

I personally think Apple is late to the game.

Except Apple has been a pivotal part of the music industry and has the name, the track record and the resources to back up what they preach.

I guess. iTunes is the biggest pile of clown shit ever even/especially with their weekly updates, so I don't know resources and track record you think is going to make this any better.

@dbizzles you can save spotify songs for offline play as well if you have premium. They are literally just copying spotify and I dont see why I would be enticed to change.

i just fucking stopped updating itunes because they move around too much bullshit every time. fuck em, i'll probably stop using itunes the next time i get a new computer

On T mobile, music apps like spotify and rhapsody do not use any data. So until this gets added to the list, i dont think they will be getting any t-mobile customers to join.

'On T mobile, music apps like spotify and rhapsody do not use any data. So until this gets added to the list, i dont think they will be getting any t-mobile customers to join.'

That is actually a sweet deal. Verizon does NOT do that.

@feather Sorry, I'm a little lost. Does Spotify download a copy to your device for offline play that is only accessible through the their app?

@dbizzles correct! as long as you have premium that is. I believe you can get about 500 at a time set to (available offline mode).

is there really a limit to the number of offline tracks for spotify? damn, i've never hit it but i assumed it was unlimited

@dbizzles - Agreed, iTunes is a pain in the ass, my point is that Apple has clout in the music market, was the digital music leader for many many years, and in comparison to Tidal has more legitimacy with listeners both from their music background and how integrated their hardware is with society (iphones, macbooks, ipads, etc).

Fair enough. I only own a classic iPod from Apple, I forget how huge they are.

I need a classic iPod, can't fit all my tunes on my phone :/

I don't think we're really the core audience for this sort of thing... this is going to be marketed heavily to the mainstream music consumer who just wants all their music in one place and a convenient service. I think they'll be at least somewhat successful in that regard. [2]

Sputnik is so elite

That Tmobile deal is sweet, really makes their lower priced plans worth it if you mainly just stream music and do light web browsing.

If Apple would package this as a separate, standalone app across all platforms I could see it doing better (and drawing in more non-Apple users in the process if it's well made).

I have t-mobile and Spotify as well, it really is amazing. I can jam all day at work with no worries.

Yeah I have a few friends with it, everyone seems to like it.

Nickelback get groovy

I fuck with spotify because of the last.fm integration. Hopefully the app works with Apple's streaming service too

Nickelback get groovy [2]

Grapes master race

This is just evidence that apple copies everything and makes nothing original.

So if you can really listen to all stuff from the iTunes library without missing out on something due to legal rights stuff, I'm gonna switch from Deezer, just because iTunes has the most songs + no extra Deezer App necessary.

What I really want from Apple is the ability to create several radio stations of different genres and then be able to shuffle them like I can with Pandora's QuickMix feature. Spotify's Playlist Radio is the closest thing I can find to the concept, but if you "thumb up" any tracks, it gets stuck in that track's genre, and after a while, the radio station starts to repeat, anyway.

Apple would be favorable for me because iTunes gets new releases of bands I listen to long before Pandora does and I have more international music to choose from (e.g. I could listen to Ёлка and I could listen to Maria Mena's other albums and not just the one she released internationally).

It's not as if a streaming service is highly original though, its just the act of listening to music without downloading/physically owning it. What apple does in attempting to capture the market will reveal how original they actually are.

Yeah but they're still doing something that has been done better before.

Kinda like iOS. A piece of shit software that copies android constantly.

But my point is that we don't really know if its been done better before as we're yet to fully see what Apple is going to offer. The notion that because it's been done is not really a useful point to make seeing as there were streaming services even before Spotify, and Apple's entry is just another rung on the competitive marketing ladder. Increased competition is only going to benefit the consumer as streaming becomes a more corporately lucrative venture in the future -- Apple's entry is not a bad thing for us, or the rest of the consumer market, its only bad for Spotify and its various subsidiaries.

That's not my point. My point was that apple hasn't done anything original and the fact that they're the 50,000th company to make a streaming service for music only supports that.

And my point is that originality will be derived not from the framework of the venture (music streaming) but the way in which apple captures that market -- the notion that music streaming is a completely homogenous market is parochial. Regardless though, the point is of little consequence seeing as Apple entering into the market has consumer advantages that far outweigh the costs.

^[2]

", so the idea that this will combine my local iTunes library and streaming in one (probably) solid app is pretty enticing. "

this mostly

"My point was that apple hasn't done anything original "

Are you on crack? Maybe they haven't revolutionized anything in the past 5 years but the iPod and iPhone are 2 of the most groundbreaking inventions of the 21st Century.

"Are you on crack? Maybe they haven't revolutionized anything in the past 5 years but the iPod and iPhone are 2 of the most groundbreaking inventions of the 21st Century"

Both of those are inventions that worked off of others.

That's history bud. Plenty of people were the first to discover something but the people who made it applicable and practical are just as important.

Saying Apple hasn't done ANYTHING original is a bit of a stretch...

"That's history bud. Plenty of people were the first to discover something but the people who made it applicable and practical are just as important."

^This

You can't make dinosaurs come back to life without the people discovering the amber and finding out we could get their blood perfectly preserved! Our evolution has evolved because we continually bridge off accomplishments from those of our past for a more improved (so to speak) future.

What I'm more interested in finding out is whether you can actually download and keep all the music you take from iTunes instead of paying per album. With Playstation's PS Plus, you can download a free game and that's that. You have a free game. Xbox on the other hand, does the same thing, but if you were to lose your Xbox Live Gold subscription or were offline, that game will not allow you to play it.

I want to know where Apple is going in regards to this. If I can download as much music as I want for $9.99 a month...that's badass. But it doesn't necessarily say how you download it, whether by the song being cached to your machine or actually having your own copy. So, if I were to have this service for a year and download about 1,000 songs...do I get to keep all that music? Now, that is what I want to know.

Now of course, I don't HAVE to download all my music. I can easily stream music but I'm more suited towards having all my music even without connection to any online service/method (wifi, cellular etc). I never listen to the radio and generally know exactly what I want to listen to so that isn't much of a selling point. Buuuuuuuut, if I were to stream any full and complete album and decide it was worth downloading, and have that option to, 100% legally take what I've enjoyed, I find that incredibly valuable. Considering iTunes has a selection well past almost all (would be) competitors once this service is running, that's a pretty big option for most to cancel other services and take as much as they want.

With regard to your question, it's not an "all-you-can-eat" platform. You're not paying $10/month to download as much as you possibly can. That would do some pretty serious damage to the music industry and artists alike.

I imagine that you'll be able to download the tracks to your device and listen to them offline, much like Rdio's or Spotify's platform, but once you stop paying the monthly fee, you'll no longer have access to that music unless you purchase it outright.

Agreed, I assume their platform will mirror Spotify's business model.