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Apple may be under FTC investigation for Beats deals
The hushed whispers surrounding the Federal Trade Commission's supposed investigation into Apple's Beats Music service relaunch have gotten a little louder. From the sounds of it, Cupertino's approached record labels and over a dozen of artists, throwing its weight around as the largest seller of music to snag "limited exclusive" rights and partnerships to pad out a new version of the formerly-owned-by Dr. Dre music service. Bloomberg's sources say that the FTC's still pretty early in the process, but the inquiry revolves around how Apple's dominance in the music sales space, coupled with exclusive deals, could put the likes of Spotify at a disadvantage. It's something other streaming outfits like Tidal don't exactly have to worry about because they don't have iTunes attached to them.
Rhapsody lets you stream over 30 million songs on Twitter
In an effort to better compete with a juggernaut like Spotify, Rhapsody is using one of the world's most popular social networks to showcase and promote its music-streaming service. Today, at SXSW 2015, Rhapsody announced that it's bringing more than 30 million songs to Twitter, allowing users of the microblogging platform to streams songs directly from it -- for free. The audio-subscription service is using Twitter Cards to let people stream and share their favorite tunes, regardless of whether or not they have a paid Rhapsody account. So, what's the catch? It's simple: Rhapsody's hoping that those who see these audio-embedded tweets, on iOS or Android, will want to hear more and end up on a landing page that's set to offer a free trial.
Jay Z's bid to buy a Spotify competitor is back on (update: done!)
You might be expecting a riff on one of Jay Z's lyrics to preface the news that stockholders have apparently approved Hova's bid for music-streaming outfit Aspiro. Sorry, it's not happening; instead, the excellent photo above will just have to suffice. Anyhow, with today's looming deadline to make a decision, Swedish news outlet E24 reports that Aspiro's minority shareholders have decided it was best to accept the 464 million Krona (roughly $56 million) bid from S. Carter Enterprises' "Project Panther." Next up? Most likely, an official announcement from both parties and then something from a governing trade body saying that the sale's been approved. If you need something to do until then, you could always dig an old Samsung phone out of the drawer, fire up the Magna Carta app and remind yourself of Jay's last streaming move. Update (3/13): Jay Z's Project Panther Bidco announced today that it acquired enough shares to take over Aspiro. [Image credit: Getty Images]
The UK official albums chart will soon include streaming data
The way we all consume music has changed remarkably since charts began ranking the popularity of tracks and artists decades ago. In July last year, the UK's Official Charts Company thought it was about time online streaming figures contributed to the crafting of the singles chart. And today, it's announced the official albums chart will begin incorporating streaming intel, too. Starting with the chart to be released on March 1st, plays from Spotify, Deezer, Napster, Google Play, Xbox Music, Rdio, Rara and O2 Tracks will count towards album rankings. It's more problematic than it might seem at first, however, as the Official Charts Company is keen not to let a few killer singles propel an album undeservedly to the top spot.
Streams and vinyl sales double while music downloads dwindle
Need even more proof that vinyl is more than just a passing fad for the Pabst Blue Ribbon crowd? Here goes: While digital album and song sales continued their downward spiral, record sales have more than doubled since last year. All this is according to Nielsen Soundscan, which reports that the 9.2 million wax tally is the highest since it started tracking sales in 1991. For context, however, digital sales still bested physical by a massive margin (CDs weren't broken out, according to The Wall Street Journal), with 106.5 million albums downloaded in 2014. Meanwhile, individual song sales dipped 12 percent compared to 2013.
Billboard tweaks album sales chart to include streams, digital track sales
Until now, the Billboard 200 chart has been ranked based on albums sales, but that's about to change. On November 30th, that list will expand its criteria to include sales of a record's individual tracks and streaming plays for the chart that'll post on December 4th. Ten tracks sold will equal one album, while 1,500 spins via the likes of Spotify, Rdio or Beats Music from the same title will count as one sale, too. "Now we have the ability to look at that engagement and gauge the popularity of an album over time," Billboard's director of charts Silvio Pietroluongo told The New York Times. As you might expect, pop stars stand to benefit most.
On T-Mobile, you can now stream music without hurting your data plan
Streaming music on your phone would be fantastic -- if it weren't for all those pesky data caps. T-Mobile's latest UnCarrier move addresses this particular pain point: Starting today, you'll be able to listen to all of your favorite jams on popular streaming music services without it counting against your data plan. The catch? It's limited to a few of the most popular offerings, such as Pandora, Spotify, iTunes Radio, iHeartRadio, Slacker, Rhapsody and Samsung's Milk Music. T-Mobile exec Andrew Sherrard explained that the aforementioned services encompass 85 percent of what users listen to, so the list covers the vast majority of the carrier's consumers. That said, Sherrard said that the company plans to reach out for feedback via a social media campaign, so make your voice heard if you're interested in getting services like Rdio or Google Play Music added to the list. If your favorite program is included, feel free to start filling up those playlists to your heart's content.
iTunes Radio now streams the news, thanks to NPR
It's been nearly a year since Apple announced its plans to join Spotify, Rdio and Pandora as a music streaming service provider. However, while beats, melodies and harmony are great, some would say iTunes Radio's sonic buffet is lacking -- it has no news channels. No longer. NPR has joined the service as a 24-hour news streaming station, with broadcasts starting right now. Of course, folks have long been able to get their public radio fix via NPR's website, but now fanboys and girls can get it straight from Apple's service. For now, NPR is the first and only news channel on iTunes Radio, but we've a sneaking suspicion that exclusivity won't last for long.
The new Sonos app makes music discovery simpler with universal search
Here's the deal: streaming music services are great, but thanks to various content licensing deals with labels, there's no one-stop shop to cover all of your musical bases. That's where Sonos comes in with a handy solution by way of its new app. The refreshed Controller app for Android and iOS now includes a universal search feature that indexes your multiple streaming accounts to make finding and listening to Tool, or that haunting Banks track, less of a painful experience. Of course, you'll need a Sonos player to partake in this game of streaming musical chairs, and some patience -- the app won't be released until sometime this spring. Though, Android users can get in early and preview the pared-down, three-pane UI now by signing up for the beta.
Have a favorite music streaming service? Sound off, people of Engadget
Wrapping your head around all the various options for streaming music can be overwhelming. How do you choose between Spotify, Rdio, Beats Music, Rhapsody, Google Play Music All Access or any of the other services out there? Engadget Forums member daninbusiness is here to help, and he's done a great job breaking down the pros and cons of each music provider that he's used. But one man's opinion does not a consensus make, y'all. What's your go-to choice for music? How would you persuade your friends that the benefits of Spotify far exceed those of Rdio? Sound off in the forums, folks, your wisdom is needed.
Now all Last.fm tracks are playable through Spotify
Spotify may not have the massive marketing muscle behind it like that of new entrant Beats Music, but the small streaming service is looking to expand its reach in other ways. Today, the company announced a partnership that'll see the entirety of its music catalog made available for playback on Last.fm. Now, when Last.fm users click play on a track, Spotify will be launched in the background, with a convenient bar for playback controls appearing at the bottom of the screen. Additionally, any grouping of tracks on a particular Last.fm page will appear as a playlist within Spotify. The integration is pretty straightforward to get set up, as all you'll need to connect your Last.fm and Spotify accounts, whether free or premium, is to click on a track and initiate playback. There's not much else to it beyond that. Just don't expect this Spotify and Last.fm integration to work on your smartphone or tablet, as it's not currently supported on mobile browsers. There are also a few known bugs for the service to work out, like unavailable tracks showing play buttons and only the first 70 displayed tracks on a page being made available for playback. Oh, and it should go without saying that if you're in a territory where Spotify's not yet available, well, you'll have to sit this one out.
Beats Music builds a unique, if messy, listening experience around emotion
The Beats empire has officially expanded beyond its humble headphone roots. Beats Music has officially launched (download it from the iTunes App Store here), and become the latest contestant for your streaming music dollar. Of course, the market for such services is already pretty crowded. Between Spotify, Google Play and Rdio (just to name a few) one might wonder "why bother?" Well, the company thinks there's plenty of fish in the sea who haven't jumped aboard the music subscription bandwagon just yet. While we're sure execs are hoping to convert a few listeners along the way, they're more concerned with broadening the pool of customers. After two years of plugging away, with a little help from Trent Reznor and its MOG acquisition, Beats feels it has something unique to offer; something built around curation, emotion and a personalized user experience. It all sounds good in theory, but the real question is whether or not the reality lives up to the promise. As usual, the answer is complicated and it awaits you after the break.
Google is mapping the history of modern music
It's no surprise that Google has been tracking music uploads, but what's unexpected is exactly what the search giant is doing with all of that info. Interactive maps of music's ongoing journey are charted through Play Music's users' libraries, found over on Google's Research Blog. You could, for example, trace the ebb and flow of a genre era by era (rock remains one of the biggies while electronica's presence is relatively new), or even identify which release from a band is the most prominent. Looking at the Deftones, their biggest album is 2000's White Pony, and they're near the top of the alt-metal heap overall. Music nerds could lose a few days poring over the various ins and outs of the soundtrack to their lives, so be careful who you share this with. Perhaps best of all, Google says this likely won't be the last collaboration we see between the research and music teams.
Spotify gives desktop users unlimited music without a subscription
Streaming from Spotify's desktop client has never been a simple affair. Users had to abide with grace periods, monthly usage caps and even limits on how many times they could listen to individual tracks, but now, that's all changing. The company recently announced that it's eliminated those stipulations, and you can listen to as much music as you want without a subscription. There will be ads of course (because nothing is truly without cost), but at least this move is a little more flexible than the service's effort to free up its mobile apps; there aren't any shuffle-only requirements on desktop. The change will certainly be a boon to penny-pinching users, but hopefully it won't affect the payouts for new artists -- rumor has it they're low enough as-is.
Billboard: Digital music sales decrease for the first time ever, vinyl continues to grow
It was inevitable: After years of highs and then a plateau, digital music sales saw their first decrease in 2013. Last year, digital song purchases dropped almost six percent according to a Billboard report, while digital album sales dropped 0.1 percent. Compact discs continued their downward spiral as well, and took a 14.5 percent loss. On the flip side, pure analog music (read: vinyl) showed an increase of 31.9 percent -- representing a full two percent of music sales. Until Nielsen's SoundScan report for streaming hits, however, we won't know how much of an impact the likes of Spotify or Rdio are having on purchases. We have a hunch it'll be rather telling. [Image credit: karola riegler photography/Flickr]
Deezer unveils personalized music discovery features and native Mac app
It's hard to talk of music streaming service Deezer and not mention the behemoth in the room: Spotify. A launch in the US is certainly needed for Deezer to become a true rival, but in the meantime, it's adding new features for current users, which hail from basically everywhere else. Today sees the reveal of "Hear This," a custom feed which recommends music based on what you've listened to before, what your friends are into, and what Deezer's global editors think is hot. Also coming is "Explore," a browsing tool that lets you filter beats by genre and region. Other minor updates include new search/filter functions and a track history within your Library, as well as a preview mode that allows you to catch 30 seconds of a song before deciding whether to hear more. Deezer also teased that it's concocting a Mac app that'll integrate with Finder, although wouldn't give any timeline for release. Hear This and Explore, however, will arrive shortly: November 12th for Premium subscribers, and November 19th for everybody else.
Rdio rolling out custom recommendations based on what you play, who you follow
Rdio's been busy making deals, tweaking its player and adding functionality over the past few months, and now it's learning you what to listen to. The music streaming service is starting to drop hints about albums, stations and playlists -- making recommendations based on users' listening habits and who they've been following. These Echo Nest-powered suggestions are rolling out to browsers now, and the company's blog says iOS and Android will see the functionality soon. Now, if you start getting all kinds of admonishments for The Baha Men, you only have yourself to blame.
TUAW Tip: iTunes Radio uncensored (video tutorial)
If you enjoy listening to music via streaming-music services such as Spotify, Rdio or Pandora, then you are going to get a kick out of Apple's newly released iTunes Radio. The service has been awesome over the last two months of beta testing, featuring a great mix of music and stellar quality playback. The one thing that had put a bee in my bonnet until the iTunes 11.1 update released today had been the butchering censorship of the music on iTunes Radio. Talking about this with fellow TUAW Blogger Steve Sande, he showed me how to fix this. I was so excited, I had to make a video to share with you. In iTunes 11.1, click on the Music icon under Library in the side bar and click the Radio tab. Under the station choose slider, you will find a toggle button to "Allow Explicit." Simply turn it on or off as you please. On iOS 7, while playing a selection from iTunes Radio, you will see an information "i" icon in the top-center of the screen. Tap the information icon and there you will find a similar "Allow Explicit Tracks" toggle. So whether you're listening to Jay-Z, Jay & Silent Bob or Jane's Addiction, you can now enjoy the music your mama wouldn't approve of just the way it was meant to be. try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-506467").style.display="none";}catch(e){}
iTunes Radio now rolling out in iTunes 11.1 update, brings Spotify-like streaming to the desktop
The release of iOS 7 is undoubtedly the big Apple news of the day, but there's another new product rolling out with it as well: iTunes Radio. The Spotify-like feature, which was announced during Apple's iPhone event last week, is part of the new iTunes 11.1 and allows users to create custom radio stations based on their personal music libraries or musical proclivities (e.g., genre, artists, track, etc.). Naturally, the service, like its competitors, is freemium, so you'll have to pony up $25/year for iTunes Match in order to keep the hits coming sans advertisements. The update should be hitting all Macs running OS X 10.6.8 and up now, so while you're frantically hitting refresh on that iOS update, you may as well check for this -- or head to the source below for the download link.
iTunes Radio reportedly launching next month with audio ads every 15 minutes, video once an hour
This September, Apple's expected to flip the switch on iTunes Radio, the music service announced at WWDC in June. But how exactly will Cupertino fund its pricey new streaming venture? Ads, and lots of them -- according to AdAge, Apple will serve up an audio advertisement every 15 minutes, while video ads will play every hour, and only at times that users are likely to be looking at the display, such as right after hitting play or jumping to a new song. McDonald's, Nissan, Pepsi and Procter & Gamble are all on board as launch advertisers, with each deal bringing many millions of dollars in revenue. Only free users will have to deal with frequent disturbances, however. Users paying $25 per year for an iTunes Match subscription will have ad-free access to Radio, letting them stream tunes continuously without interruption.
