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Spotify may be close to launching in India
Spotify is already the most popular music streaming service in most major markets and it's looking to widen the gap. The Swedish tech firm has reportedly secured deals with many of the largest music rights holders in India over the last few months, according to Bloomberg. That news comes hot on the heels of a Variety report that the company plans to launch in the country of 1.3 billion people within the next six months.
Spotify officially returns to Roku devices
As expected, Spotify has officially returned to Roku's streaming platform. The music streaming app will be available on most Roku players and TVs running Roku OS 8.2 or higher. Access to the service starts today and will roll out to all supported device by the end of the year, according to Roku.
Winamp plans a streaming-friendly revival in 2019
Winamp, a relic from the Wild West days of digital music, not only still exists but has a major update on the way for next year. Parent company Radionomy is planning to reboot the service as an all-in-one app that pulls podcasts, playlists, streaming radio stations—basically any sound you can fill your ears with—into a single platform. According to TechCrunch, the update is due out in 2019.
President Trump signs the Music Modernization Act into law
Today, the president signed the Music Modernization Act into law with various celebrities, including Kid Rock, Mike Love and John Rich, present. This is one of the largest reforms to copyright law in decades, and it focuses on updating music copyright law to be current with the streaming era. It also will hopefully mean more royalties for artists and songwriters.
Spotify may start cracking down on family plan sharing (updated)
Spotify's Premium for Family plan is a good deal: $15 a month snags you up to six ad-free accounts on the service, which would normally cost $10 each. It's not a surprise, then, that people have been sharing the accounts among friends to save a few bucks. Now Spotify appears to be cracking down on the practice.
Spotify event series offers aspiring artists music industry tips
Spotify appears to be on a mission to aid emerging artists as much as possible, with efforts including allowing them to upload music directly to the streaming service and offering some of them advances for licensing their work. The latest plan to help them out is a series of events designed to connect them with music industry experts and provide them with advice.
Spotify taps DJ Semtex for hip-hop culture podcast
Following in the footsteps of Zane Lowe and Ryan Newman, hip-hop aficionado DJ Semtex is the latest BBC Radio veteran to jump ship to a music streaming service. He'll be handling co-presenting duties alongside RCA's Parris O'Loughlin-Hoste on season two of Spotify's original podcast Who We Be TALKS_; a weekly show that explores the "music and lifestyle that surrounds [hip-hop and grime] culture".
Sonos IFTTT recipes let your smart home control your music
Last month, Sonos promised to open up its API to third-party companies, and it's off to a great start by partnering with IFTTT. IFTTT lets you automate smart home devices like door locks, thermostats and lights, which opens up some interesting possibilities. For instance, you can have Sonos play your radio station of choice when you unlock your door, program Hue light colors to playlists, or play a specific song when your Dominoes pizza goes out for delivery (like, I don't know, William Tell Overture).
Third-party apps will soon work a lot better with Sonos devices
Sonos has partnered with plenty of software companies over the years to enhance its own offerings -- after all, if streaming music services don't want to play ball with the company, its products aren't very useful. Starting in September, the Sonos software department is about to get a lot more open. The company says that it is opening up access to the Sonos platform and releasing a new set of APIs to give third-party developers more access to Sonos control in their own apps.
Sonos Amp is an AV hub built to handle complex setups
Over the last decade, Sonos has slowly built up a reputation for making excellent speakers built for the age of streaming music. The company started in 2005 with the ZP100, a product that let buyers connect their speakers to the internet for streaming music, and pair units for multi-room audio. Sonos released an updated version, renamed the Connect Amp, shortly after, but since then the company has focused more on making its own speakers and hasn't updated the Connect Amp in years. That changes, as of today. The new, $599 Sonos Amp is a major upgrade to the old Connect Amp. At a high level, the box connects up to four speakers to the Sonos platform, which means you can stream music and other audio from over 100 services to those speakers. If you have any existing Sonos speakers, you can group them with speakers connected to the Amp. It also has line-in for CD players, turntables or other audio devices; once they're hooked up, you can stream that audio to other Sonos speakers. And you can have multiple Amps that can all talk to each other, as well.
Google Assistant can play songs from Pandora Premium
Pandora's Plus and ad-supported users have been able to listen using Google Home for almost two years, and the streaming service is now meshing more tightly with Google Assistant. Starting today, Premium listeners can use their voice to play on-demand tunes and playlists on devices with the assistant baked in, including Google's smart speakers and third-party devices.
Apple Music's 'Friends Mix' is a playlist of your pals' top tunes
Apple is giving your friends the keys to your Music account. Okay, not really, but every Monday, it'll compile 25 songs your friends are listening to into a playlist dubbed, you guessed it, "Friends Mix." 9to5Mac notes that this doesn't seem to be tied to a specific iOS update. From the sounds of it, the new trick relies heavily on the social features (seeing your friends' listening history, specifically) announced last June. Of course, this isn't the only playlist feature Apple Music has going for it. There's also "My Chill Mix" and the weekly new release mix. Editorial and personalized playlists have been Spotify's bread and butter for awhile, and Apple Music is keen to take a few notes from its competitor. The feature is currently in a staggered rollout so, if you don't see the mix pop up in your For You section, or Siri doesn't respond when you ask it to play the mix, just be patient. Welcome to the social.
YouTube Music is about to get a lot better
YouTube Music launched in May to mixed reviews. Even though its song catalog matches Apple Music and Spotify's (in addition to millions of videos pulled from YouTube) it arrived missing some essential features. Something as simple as sorting out your saved albums alphabetically, for example, isn't an option. You also can't browse by genre or easily see new albums from the week. But Google, which will replace Play Music with YouTube Music, is aware of these shortcomings and plans to address them soon.
Spotify users still can't block followers, but that could change
Spotify isn't as much of a haven from harassment as many might like. Since the service shares your plays with followers by default, it's possible for harassers to keep up with your listening habits and exploit that to their advantage (say, by finding out when you're in a sad mood). The company has remained quiet on the prospect of a blocking feature in response to this, but it now appears to be more receptive to the idea. BuzzFeed News has discovered that Spotify recently labeled a years-old request for a user blocking feature as a "good idea." It's not on the company's "current" roadmap, according to the notice, but that's a distinct improvement from the approach so far.
AirPlay 2 makes Sonos the best audio option for most iPhone owners
For a long time, Sonos was only capable of streaming music to its speakers through a proprietary app, but that's changed in the last few years. After working with music services like Spotify and Pandora, users can stay in those apps and stream music straight to your Sonos setup. That hasn't been the case if you're an Apple Music user, until now: as of today, Sonos supports Apple's AirPlay 2 protocol. After spending a week or so testing out a beta version of the software, I can say that pretty much all Sonos owners who use iOS devices will get a lot out of this update.
Spotify's FCC registration hints that hardware is on the way
Spotify just made it clear that its hardware plans are more than a passing fancy. The streaming music mainstay has registered with the FCC, giving it a grantee code (2AP3D if you're curious) and signalling its intent to test wireless devices. There are no filings at this stage (those usually appear closer to a product's release), but there have already been hints of a smart speaker and an in-car player.
Engadget giveaway: Win a pair of Sonos One speakers courtesy of Plex!
Owning your music catalog is a rare thing for some these days, but since you've got it, flaunt it. Plex for Sonos has recently moved out of beta and includes some fresh new features. This means you can serve up your tunes on Sonos speakers anywhere using just the Sonos app. The latest updates bring faster browsing along with additional info on artists including top songs and even tour dates. Plus you can now play FLAC and AAC files. This week, Plex has provided us with two Sonos One smart speakers for one lucky reader, so they can put Plex for Sonos to the test in their own home. This also includes a Lifetime Plex Pass, so you'll be able to set up libraries for all of your music and movies to have at your fingertips whenever you want them. Just head to the Rafflecopter widget below for up to five chances at winning this Plex for Sonos set up. Good luck!
YouTube Music arrives late to the party with room for improvement
A massive number of people use YouTube not just for videos, but as a de facto music-streaming service, not unlike Spotify. YouTube is well aware of this, which is why the company has been trying to make music an official part of its paid offerings for nearly four years now. This week, YouTube Music launched in early access, and it's the closest the company has come yet to building a proper Spotify or Apple Music competitor. Google's launch strategy behind YouTube Music and what's now called YouTube Premium has been confusing, but now that the service is rolling out to the masses, it's time to see how it stacks up to other streaming-music options. After spending a few days with YouTube Music, it's clear that there's potential here, but that a ton of work needs to be done before it's on par with the established players.
YouTube’s 'Artist on the Rise' program spotlights new music stars
There are few better ways to win points with your music-loving friends than being the first to find a great new artist. It's easier to find emerging names through streaming rather than by trawling through the latest release section at a record store. Most of the major services highlight new stars with curated playlists, documentaries and prominent placement, and YouTube's delving deeper into the action with its Artist on the Rise program.
A first look at Spotify’s redesigned free mobile experience
As rumored, Spotify today unveiled a redesigned app that's geared toward users of its free music-streaming service at an event in New York City. The new mobile experience is all about personalized on-demand listening, with 15 playlists that are curated by Spotify based on your listening habits. That includes sets like the Daily Mix, which feature songs you've "hearted" (aka liked) and Discover Weekly, which is designed to help you expand your music taste with artists and tracks you may not be too familiar with. The Release Radar playlist, meanwhile, will let you keep up with all the new music popping up on the service. Spotify says that the more songs you "heart" or "hide," the smarter its playlists will get and others will begin to populate as a result.
