Even More News from the World of Streaming Music Services [UPDATES]
Next Tuesday (June 30), Apple Music will make its debut, something that will no doubt shake up the world of streaming music. But there are other things going on, too.
Item 1: Tidal’s Tide Continues to Go Out
First the company lost its CEO. Now its interim CEO is done. Cut your losses, Jay Z. Get out while you can. Bigger picture: what does this say for the streaming business as a whole?
Item 2: Google Just Launched “Free Music for Everything You Do” with Google Play Music
Uh-oh. I guess they can expect a stern letter from Taylor Swift.
Item 3: Amazon’s AI Robot Speakers are Now on Sale
Ask it to stream music from Amazon and it will.
https://youtu.be/KkOCeAtKHIc
Item 4: Indie Labels are Coming on Board with Apple Music
Now that Taylor Swift has shamed Apple Music into paying royalties to all artists during the 90-day free trial period, indie labels like Beggars Banquet are signing on. This will keep the Apple Music library from having a lot of embarrassing holes.
Item 5: How Much Music Revenue Does Apple Need?
More. Possibly a lot more. From USA Today:
With the roll out of its new music streaming and Internet-based radio services this month, Apple is entering the entertainment industry in a much deeper way.
Yet along with the new business opportunities the company acquired with Beats Music, Apple also faces new competitive pressures. These forces are different than those it faces from fellow smartphone and tablet makers like Samsung Electronics.
Those market forces include the demands of superstar musicians — and not just Taylor Swift.
Item 6: Game Spotify with an App Called Eternify.
Enter any artist and a song will stream a 30-second loop of the song endless. Since Spotify pays out after the first 30 seconds of the song, each loop results in a payment. The catch? Each 30 seconds generates at most $0.005 for the artist, which means that you’ll have to let that one loop run for 100 minutes to earn $1 for the artist. Full details at The Verge.
