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Apple Music's Reliance on Exclusives Coming Under Fire From Labels and Critics
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Not even remotely similar situations. HBO created GoT, so of course they host it, but Apple isn't creating the music, instead it's using its DEEP pockets to buy exclusive content from the biggest stars. If it's Apple Music service can't succeed on its own merits, they will force users to switch/join by locking down the biggest pop artists to exclusive contracts. Sad, and not what people expect from Apple. But the stakes are too high, and Apple will do ANYTHING to avoid losing in the digital music delivery sector.
I wonder if UMG would feel better if instead of calling it an exclusive (for two weeks) they called it a sneak preview with the actual launch the same date as everyone else gets it.
BINGO!!! The labels are afraid that other artists may go independent then what happens? They don't get a pay day. The labels could have gotten together a long time ago and did something similar to HULU for music, but they didn't, and now they are complaining because they see Services like Apple Music, Spotify, Google Music, and Spotify as a threat because they realize the potential for the Artist to cut them out.
Microsoft could only dream about getting away with one tenth of what Apple has gotten away with already.
I don't get why Apple is the only company getting flack for a practice that all of the major streaming service are are doing. Apple pays the most money to the artists, and these deals make those artists even more money. Isn't that what the goal is? For artists to get paid well for their work? The other thing I don't get, is that this is coming from a company that also has been make exclusive deals. Hypocrites!
Damn right I want it NOW!!!!! We live live in NOW society. There will be a Pre-Order thread about the new iPhone, and everyone will be impatiently refreshing their shipper's tracking site and complaining. One of the biggest complaints about Android devices is they don't get Android updates as soon as it's released. So don't act like the NOW factor isn't important.
If I'm paying monthly for a service and other services uncut the one that I'm paying for with exclusives, that hurts me as a consumer. So screw them, I'll pirate. It's a dog eat dog world.
Agree with everything here. I mean if folks were really concerned about how much artists are reimbursed, then BUY the music. Geez!
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I keep saying it, but Prince did it and actually sold direct to consumer on his websites.
Based on?....Apple is doing what other companies have done since there were other companies. The difference is, unlike many others, they're doing it particularly well and have a huge war chest to dig into if necessary.
And as others have already mentioned, what Apple is doing is no different than what HBO, Netflix and Showtime are doing, namely as much as I want to watch The Strain I understand that I don't have FX, therefore I can't watch it.
If you want to listen to an Apple exclusive within a certain window of time, get Apple Music. If not, you have nothing to complain about.
Exclusives are a fairly common practice throughout commerce. For example, every multi-brand clothing retailer does, in essence, the same thing Apple is doing here. They exclusively host a multitude of brands and designers, some more prominently than others for periods of time.
Saying this is a bad practice is baseless and filled with hyperbole.
Saying this is a bad practice is baseless and filled with hyperbole.
Exactly. They're just losing money faster now. Thats what competition does. Is Apple Music better? Not necessarily. But is the value proposition a lot higher for folks committed to the Apple platform. Absolutely.
This is not competition? Apple Music luring artists with money to get a one up over the competition that has had YEARS to get it right?
Wow you fooled me.
What? According to that logic Netflix is hurting everyone else that subscribes to a different service since they can't watch Stranger Things on those services.
It's not Apples or Tidal or Google Play Music or whatever service you want fault that Spotify can't sign exclusives because of their business model, you bought a service and you knows it's strengths and weaknesses, love with them otherwise you're basically denying an competition on the market because different services have different strengths.
The goal of competition is exactly to undercut competition so your product is successful, Apple couldn't do it on price so they're doing it with money by buying exclusives, Spotify can do exactly the same and outbid Apple, I'm sure the artists will be more than pleased with a exclusivity war.
Spotify is all sour because it realized its business model simply isn't profitable and to add to that they're competing against one of the largest if not the largest tech company in the world which also happens to have more money than some countries. Poor decisions mixed with bad timing appear to be leading Spotify to its slow death.
I wonder if it's not just Universal who have had enough of exclusives, I noticed that the two new Usher tracks (who's signed to sony) are on all streaming sites, with his previous tracks he's released this year, tidal had them before anyone elese
It's difference with video, cause that's how it's always been. With music, this exclusive crap is alienating consumers.
How is it alienating customers? Also exclusive already existed before Apple Music, simply Apple was unable to compete in monthly price so they're competing in content, using their war chest.
I can only clap and praise for their smart strategy: use industry-standard measures to force the competition to compete on terms in which Apple is strongest (money), undercutting the competition with industry-standard measures is an amazing business move.
If it's good for the consumer is to be determined but I doubt it'll be too bad as Apple seems pretty good at pricing their services.
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Then according to your logic. It should be alright for providers to make bandwidth tiers, and slow down or ban services that don't comply. Pretty sure you wouldn't like it if it cost you more to use Netflix, cause it's exclusive for higher tiered internet plans.
They did offer tiered internet plans, a few years ago there were data caps and each price point had higher speeds and a higher limit of bandwidth you could use.
Also your example does not stand: no one is denying access to the data, it's simply being released exclusive to certain customers before (like they used to do with pre-release access in which if you paid more you'd get access earlier).
Also no one is banning anyone from anything, simply a service that has a flawed business model which doesn't allow it to compete in its market.
They tried to be nice and be the Google of streaming, relying on ads to survive and they basically dug their own grave: massive costs created by customers that are unwilling to pay for the service and would most likely leave the service if they were required to pay or the number/length of ads were increased, a fan base with 0 value for the company and what's even worse for them is that they can't even compete in price as they were never profitable to begin with.
There was never a situation in which Spotify's business model worked: they either couldn't make streaming attractive to customers or they'd make it so attractive that the large companies would all want a piece of the market and anihilate them in a long battle of money. Not only that, their best platform is none other than the platform of the company that created iTunes and is known for integrating services exceptionally well in their systems. Did they really think Apple wouldn't come up with a streaming service? Next will be messaging services (the only thing stopping them is the fact their service is exclusive to iOS).
Spotify thought it was the Apple/Google of streaming due to its 100M+ users and now it's shocked at reality: small company competing against mega corporations that have larger profits in a quarter than Spotify has had revenues in almost a decade.
There a lot of streaming services alternatives to Apple Music and Spotify (although Tidal seems to be dying).
If you're referring to the App Store situation Spotify has to comply with the rules to be in the store and the rules are the same for everyone so I don't see how they're hurting Spotify exclusively.
That's not what I was saying. Reread my post, I was speaking of tiers according to services being used.
How is one thing related to the other? There is no wrong doing unless Apple doing what the industry already did is suddenly wrong doing, they're simply beating everyone else at the industry game.
Also your example doesn't stand even with this view as there no services being denied or being tiered.
There's a business using money to be more attractive to customers and business unable to do the same.
Also businesses like Netflix probably pay more not for bandwidth but for the network reliability.
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