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YouTube Music Key is the streaming service for people who don't like streaming services
YouTube's entry into the music streaming market certainly wasn't without a few raised eyebrows. First of all, Google (which owns YouTube) already has a music streaming service. Secondly, how is it going to handle all the unofficial music, remixes, parodies and lyrics videos? Or, what about spotty artist discographies, audio quality, or those independent and unsigned artists? So many questions. Now that the beta invites are out, and I've had chance to use it in real life, it's suddenly starting to make a lot of sense. Amongst all the fail videos and movie trailers, YouTube hides a digital warehouse full of endless undiscovered musical gems. Potentially more music than any other site could ever have. [Image credit: Touchstone Pictures]
YouTube's music service launches in 'weeks' following indie deal
After a long (and frequently contentious) negotiation process, YouTube's long hinted-at music service appears to be close to launch. Sources for the Financial Times claim that YouTube has finally signed a deal with Merlin, the rights group that represents about 20,000 indie music labels. The move gives the ad-free streaming option a well-stocked catalog ahead of its launch, which is reportedly due within "weeks." It's not clear just what broke the deadlock, but a tipster says that the new terms are "substantially more favorable" than what YouTube offered in June -- Merlin's decision to hold out (and risk losing revenue on music video streams) appears to have paid off. It's tough to tell if having indies onboard will help YouTube compete with music veterans like Spotify, but the agreement at least means that you won't be giving up a lot of big-name artists just to give the Google-powered service a spin. [Image credit: Jason Persse, Flickr]
Engadget Daily: Verizon's Droid Turbo, YouTube's music subscription service and more!
What has a whopping battery, metallized glass-fiber backside and beautifully crisp Quad HD display? Verizon's Droid Turbo, that's what. Want more? Of course you do -- read on for all our news highlights from the last 24 hours, including YouTube's music subscription service, Google's fitness app and the PlayStation 2.0 update.
YouTube CEO confirms music subscription service is coming soon
There have been plenty of rumors about YouTube starting up a music subscription service, including a confirmation from the Google-owned group in June that it was coming later in the summer (which has obviously come and gone). Tonight we heard another confirmation, this time straight from the mouth of CEO Susan Wojcicki. In an interview at Code/Mobile, the executive said that her team was indeed "working on it" and that this is a near-term goal. While she didn't get into specifics on the program, which may or may not be called Music Key (according to rumors, that is), she stated that one of the obstacles is figuring out "how to give people options" -- likely a way of saying that YouTube is still working out the pricing tiers and what features would be available for each individual plan. And given that the service will supposedly include concert footage and other videos, it may be a bit more complex than what competitors like Spotify offer. It's not clear when exactly we'll see this service ready for the public, but this is at least a solid indication that it didn't just completely vanish, never to be enjoyed by our eyes and ears. [Image credit: Getty Images]
