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Gracenote unleashes its vast musical know-how to developers
You've probably used Gracenote thousands of times and have been none the wiser, but for good reason: the musical metadata service lives in the background of several apps, appearing only momentarily to bring meaning to your favorite tunes. Now, Gracenote is looking to expand its reach by opening its APIs and SDKs to app developers -- effectively putting its massive database in the hands of all who seek it. Of course, ripping CDs isn't quite what it once was, and that's why Gracenote has also opened its MusicID song recognition service to developers, allowing them to harness the same functionality of apps such as Shazam and SoundHound. The free service is available now, and for extra insight, you'll find the full PR after the break.
Shazam for the iPhone
Song Identification is very near to my heart. For a while, I tried resurrecting my "Listen.app" iPhone utility but a GraceNote license was out of reach (about the price of a typical condo) and early talks with Shazam (via Tapulous) never went anywhere. So I was absolutely gobsmacked when today I found that Shazam had gone ahead and released a version of its Music Identification Software for the iPhone. You hold it up to record a few seconds and Shazam identifies the music. The software is beautifully designed and a joy to use. You can save your tag history and buy music you like directly from iTunes as well as share the music info with friends via email. Kudos to Shazam for releasing such a beautiful application. Although it's currently free, it will require a service plan with a monthly cost. Going by other countries, expect the service to run about $5 to $10 per month.
