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Apple Trying to Torpedo Spotify's U.S. Launch?
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YouTube is run by Google. And what is posted there is posted with no expectation of remuneration. This situation is different.
Spotify's business model just isn't healthy. Plain and simple. Free music? The very idea sounds pretty fishy. If I were an artist I certainly wouldn't want to be involved with that idea.
I find it hard to trust a service or product I haven't paid for. It means that a) no one is accountable to me, and b) someone important down the line is probably getting shafted involuntarily.
OK, as a UK user, Spotify is by no means perfect. In fact it's mildly flawed. Its library is notably absent of a lot of less well known music and even if it has an artist, it's a bit haphazard about its categorisation, and discographies. You can find notable omissions and odd naming. You also fid a lot of songs that are attached to OSTs, so you end up listening to some random collection of songs from a film soundtrack rather than the artist you were searching for.
But I dont mean to paint it in too bad of a light, because:
a) it's free!
b) you only have to listen to an (unskippable) advert every 6 songs or so, in that respect its basically just like radio. (and although that concept seems antiquated now, its not as if THAT killed the music industry)
c) it's a an excellent resource for popular music.
d) it has in my opinion a rather good 'bands like' feature which can send you sailing through artists and genres, on the hunt for new music.
However, correct me if i'm wrong, but doesnt Pandora do exactly what Spotify does?
But I dont mean to paint it in too bad of a light, because:
a) it's free!
b) you only have to listen to an (unskippable) advert every 6 songs or so, in that respect its basically just like radio. (and although that concept seems antiquated now, its not as if THAT killed the music industry)
c) it's a an excellent resource for popular music.
d) it has in my opinion a rather good 'bands like' feature which can send you sailing through artists and genres, on the hunt for new music.
However, correct me if i'm wrong, but doesnt Pandora do exactly what Spotify does?
Why does it!?
Radio has always been free
They show Music Videos on the TV for free
Put simply, none of these are "free" - the labels are being compensated through advertisements.
Streaming ad-supported music is not the same as being able to download permanent copies of songs for nothing. It behaves in much the same way as radio stations do... only more personal. I assume revenue works in a similar fashion.
Spotify's free service is really just a hook into their premium service which, for £9.99 a month gives you loads more music, no adverts, better quality streams (higher bit rate), mobile device access and offline music.
I'm sure iTunes offers more music than Spotify but personally I've never failed to find a track I've been looking for on Spotify
Thanks, I was thinking the same.
As for the 'musician' from Cardiff, get your mindset out of the 'diff for a second. Anyone can be a musician, but not everyone will be a successful musician. Here's a tip to being successful; make brilliant music and expose as many people to it as you can. You're not entitled to a reasonable living wage if your music only appeals to a handful of people.
And how many new artists breakthrough onto the national scene every year without spending ££££ on recording studios etc etc? Being a new musician means being resourceful and using tech to get around any lack of a multi-million pound studio.
Truly gifted artists manage to do a lot with very little and the rewards come soon after. It's called talent.
Which is great for music that is played live but it does rule out many artists that prefer not to tour or that create albums of work in the studio that simply can't be performed live.
It's also meant a hike in live concert ticket prices too.
Incidentally, If Spotify is signifying the end of the music "Industry", why are Sony BMG, EMI, Universal and Warner Music investors in Spotify ? If it's the end of the industry then they're a pig drawing a cartload of sausages.
lol exactly. I was foolish for believing in "hope", but whether you're a Republican or Democrat, you're all the same, just politicians.
Thanks. I wrote that in a half ambien state, and felt a little sheepish for the rant. I still stand by it though, as dramatic as it may seem
Possibly the most ridiculous thing I've read all day. I've only been up for five hours, but congratulations!
No, what is specious is your claim that Spotify is a hairs-breadth away from torrents: Spotify only carries music that they have a contract to from the record companies.
Spotify acts with the agreement of the record labels and is 100% legal. If record labels or artists don't like Spotify then they are completely within their rights to withdraw (or not sign up) and their music will no longer be available.
It's nothing at all like downloading torrents.
You stream the music and get an advert every 15 minutes. You don't keep the music. It's just like listening to the radio but you are picking the songs that are played.
It's a great way to try out a new album to see if it's worth buying.
Given that it's the only way to use the mobile service, a surprising number of people do go for the £9.99 option.
The benefits of no ads, higher quality streaming and the offline mode sweeten the deal.
Apple is the Microsoft of the digital music world.
About time they behaved like the monopoly they would like to be.
Ah ok, sorry.
Still, presumably it's ad supported in the same way and with the data collected from listening habits on Spotify, presumably targeted advertising is a no brainer. It must also give a crystal clear idea to the labels of what is popular or not? (i.e. where to spend their money)
And yeah, you could rip music off Spotify just like anything else, but if someone was that way inclined, the incomplete nature of Spotify would still push people to just torrenting an 800 meg discography instead
Its a great way for unknown artists to get their music heard, this certainly isn't being done by commercial radio.
Nobody works for free on a daily basis
Doctors Without Borders?
Starting gross monthly salary of $1404
http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/work/field/
I've said it once, and I'll say it again. You keep trying to give music away for free, and we're going to lose a lot of future music geniuses. Nobody works for free.
Just look at classical music. The greatest musicians of 20th century don't (didn't) make as much money as Britney Spears. Yet, they continue to work with their art. I imagine Pierre Boulez is rich, but I don't think he is Madonna or Micheal Jackson rich. Ligeti and Meassien had a very simple life.
I don't think we would lose talented people. If music is their vocation, they are going to do it anyway.
No it's not common knowledge. It's commonly incorrect. To put matters into perspective, $3 Billion is enough to keep Apple Corporate and all it's stores around the globe open for about 2 months.
I guess Apple's concern is that, though the industry might gain a few dollars here and there from pirates beginning to use Spotify, it could potentially lose a lot more from iTunes users moving away from paid for purchases, to Spotify.
I'd imagine that's their key concern.
LOL
. You really don't understand the Spotify concept at all. They offer you a small subset of music to stream for free, interspersed with ads that you can't skip through (though they're only every 6 songs or so). Spotify also pulls in your local music collection, and can also do "social" things (think iTunes and Ping). Maybe that's what Apple are getting their knickers in a twist over. Overall it's a very convenient way of listening to music. I run it on my phone, on my Mac at work (currently listening to some chilled out Norah Jones...), at home. It's all just very easy and convenient - unlike searching around torrent sites and making all that stuff work "everywhere". The playlist options are great.
I'd be tempted to continue paying for the full service if they dropped the price a bit, but for now I'll be happy to put up with some ads as the selection is good and the ease of use plus user control beats anything out there. I believe you also get ads when listening to some commercial music radio stations, so it's hardly a new phenomenon. What you don't have to listen to is inane DJ chatter, and you get to do things like make your own playlists (and share via twitter/facebook if that floats your boat...). It's all in all quite awesome and empowering for the listener, and I can see why Apple would be worried. No idea why you should be though.
I'm a premium Spotify UK based in the UK. I use the service every single day both at work and on my iPhone and in my car (through the iPhone app and Alpine Head unit) streaming from the 3G network. Its such a fantastic way to find new artists. I'm all for it. As and when i find music i like i purchase the content through the iTunes store.
iTunes only allow a small preview window of any music of around 30 seconds whereas Spotify allows you to play the entire song/album. I believe that Spotify, certainly for UK users anyway is the best way to discover potential music interests. Unfortunately we don't have Pandora here in the UK anymore unlike the US.
Just waiting now for a Spotify app written specifically for the iPad to make use of the extra real estate available. My iPad would then be my favourite device to enjoy the Spotify experience
iTunes only allow a small preview window of any music of around 30 seconds whereas Spotify allows you to play the entire song/album. I believe that Spotify, certainly for UK users anyway is the best way to discover potential music interests. Unfortunately we don't have Pandora here in the UK anymore unlike the US.
Just waiting now for a Spotify app written specifically for the iPad to make use of the extra real estate available. My iPad would then be my favourite device to enjoy the Spotify experience