Spotify officially coming to the US to take on Apple's iTunes
Popular music streaming service Spotify has officially announced it is coming to the U.S. "soon," but no date has been given for when the service will launch and compete with Apple's iTunes Music Store.
Spotify launched a new page on Wednesday to announce that the service is coming to America. It boasts that users will be able to access "any track, any time, anywhere" for free.
"The award-winning music service that's taken Europe by storm will soon be landing on US shores," the page reads. "Millions of tracks ready to play instantly, on your computer and your phone."
Rumors of a U.S. launch for Spotify have persisted for some time, with the project reportedly in the works since at least May of 2010. Its apparently impending arrival comes after Apple has announced that its free iCloud service will arrive this fall, but not with music streaming as numerous rumors had previously indicated.
Spotify offers cloud-based music streaming with more than 8 million tracks for free with advertising support. For $15 per month, users can access the service with no ads, and download thousands of songs to an iPhone or Android handset for offline use.
There were even rumors last October that Apple was interested in buying Spotify, but the European company denied the rumor and said it had no intention of selling.
Last month, a general manager with Spotify said that the licensing agreements necessary for the service to launch in the U.S. were in the process of wrapping up. Jonathan Forster said that the company had agreed to a "faster monetization strategy" than it would have preferred.
In Europe, Spotify has 10 million active users and 10 million subscribers who pay the subscription fee of 10 Euros per month. The company's new U.S. headquarters is expected to be in New York.
While Apple's iCloud does not have an announced streaming component, one component of it does currently allow users to re-download music they have already purchased from the iTunes Music Store. And later this year, Apple will offer iTunes Match, which will scan a user's iTunes library and match songs with those on Apple's own iTunes servers, allowing them to be downloaded or even replaced with higher quality copies for $24.99 per year.
Spotify launched a new page on Wednesday to announce that the service is coming to America. It boasts that users will be able to access "any track, any time, anywhere" for free.
"The award-winning music service that's taken Europe by storm will soon be landing on US shores," the page reads. "Millions of tracks ready to play instantly, on your computer and your phone."
Rumors of a U.S. launch for Spotify have persisted for some time, with the project reportedly in the works since at least May of 2010. Its apparently impending arrival comes after Apple has announced that its free iCloud service will arrive this fall, but not with music streaming as numerous rumors had previously indicated.
Spotify offers cloud-based music streaming with more than 8 million tracks for free with advertising support. For $15 per month, users can access the service with no ads, and download thousands of songs to an iPhone or Android handset for offline use.
There were even rumors last October that Apple was interested in buying Spotify, but the European company denied the rumor and said it had no intention of selling.
Last month, a general manager with Spotify said that the licensing agreements necessary for the service to launch in the U.S. were in the process of wrapping up. Jonathan Forster said that the company had agreed to a "faster monetization strategy" than it would have preferred.
In Europe, Spotify has 10 million active users and 10 million subscribers who pay the subscription fee of 10 Euros per month. The company's new U.S. headquarters is expected to be in New York.
While Apple's iCloud does not have an announced streaming component, one component of it does currently allow users to re-download music they have already purchased from the iTunes Music Store. And later this year, Apple will offer iTunes Match, which will scan a user's iTunes library and match songs with those on Apple's own iTunes servers, allowing them to be downloaded or even replaced with higher quality copies for $24.99 per year.
Comments
Given that Spotify is a cloud-based peer-to-peer music streaming service that allows listening to any/all available music (not just your individual library) and iTunes is none of those things, it's hardly trying to 'take on iTunes'... It's offering exponentially more.
They are completely separate business models offering completely difference services.
It's offering exponentially more.
Those of us who actually like to own their music would disagree with 'exponentially more'
I have been very interested in an upgraded car stereo experience. Away from the default DVD/radio player with built in Sirius, to an app radio - like offered by Panasonic - where I can access Pandora, my iPod, etc.
Unlimited music for $15 a month has been done before, we'll have to see if streaming is the magic component that makes that price point work. It's still more than the average person spends a month to buy music outright.
People are only seeing the 15 bucks a month but you also need to consider the data.
I do wish that Apple offered iTunes streaming, at least from your own content that you've uploaded to them when iCloud finally launches. If you have multiple devices, why waste precious space on each one, filling it up with a whole bunch of songs?
Give it time - it's a question of licensing.
People are only seeing the 15 bucks a month but you also need to consider the data.
Soon the Verizon/ATT duolopoly will be charging $200/mo for basic iPhone plans with data surcharges to cover streaming services like this.
You guys are in for a real treat! Let's face it, iTunes isn't great software, it's too big, it's complex, it's disorganised. Spotify is so seamless, desktop to phone and back.
Welcome to the future!
Who looks @ their phone when listening to music? Me, I've got my phone in my pocket, so how do the advertiser's gain anything with the free version OS Spotify?
When will AT&T and Verison restart offering unlimited data plans and at what price to make streaming music possible without large overcharges when you exceed your data plan?
I see US carriers really really opposed to this.
Anyway good luck Spotify, choice is good.
Hey, Spotify, meet me at camera 3... Let me give you a hint: It took me all of 12 seconds to find out that 1) Apple has over 200 million iOS devices, and 2) Apple still is really running a break even operation with the music store. Really? Your goal is to compete with "break even?" Plus, to "compete" with Apple, you'd have to be competing for the same money in the same market. That market is the iOS market. Sure you can go for the Android market, and possibly do very well there, but to get into the iOS market, you need an app, which Apple would have to approve, and, if you sell subscriptions, get 30% of your loot. Hard to beat someone when you're in their pocket. Now Apple's got all of its sales and 30% of yours. You're not going to magically catch up to that. So really what you're trying to do is beat everyone else that isn't Apple to achieve greater sales volume or revenue to be "the biggest" online music vendor. Wait, you're model is ads and subscriptions, where Apple's, in the music section, is just straight sales. Hmm...how are you going to compare those "apples" and oranges to determine how the two stack up? Oh well, I don't think Apple cares much anyway since they're raking it in hand over fist selling iPhones, iPods and iPads. What's that? You don't sell hardware? So you're JUST going to do the subscription thing? Well, okay, have fun with that. Best of luck to you.
Mmmmm, Spotify has had an iOS app for a long time. And no, they doesn't have to pay anything to Apple, they don't do in app purchases.
Why people can't inform a little before writing?
Two things
Who looks @ their phone when listening to music? Me, I've got my phone in my pocket, so how do the advertiser's gain anything with the free version OS Spotify?
Spotify ads are voice ads, like station ads.
Mobile app only work with paid subscriptions, without ads and you can download song for oflline access
Hey, Spotify, meet me at camera 3... Let me give you a hint: It took me all of 12 seconds to find out that 1) Apple has over 200 million iOS devices, and 2) Apple still is really running a break even operation with the music store. Really? Your goal is to compete with "break even?" Plus, to "compete" with Apple, you'd have to be competing for the same money in the same market. That market is the iOS market. Sure you can go for the Android market, and possibly do very well there, but to get into the iOS market, you need an app, which Apple would have to approve, and, if you sell subscriptions, get 30% of your loot. Hard to beat someone when you're in their pocket. Now Apple's got all of its sales and 30% of yours. You're not going to magically catch up to that. So really what you're trying to do is beat everyone else that isn't Apple to achieve greater sales volume or revenue to be "the biggest" online music vendor. Wait, you're model is ads and subscriptions, where Apple's, in the music section, is just straight sales. Hmm...how are you going to compare those "apples" and oranges to determine how the two stack up? Oh well, I don't think Apple cares much anyway since they're raking it in hand over fist selling iPhones, iPods and iPads. What's that? You don't sell hardware? So you're JUST going to do the subscription thing? Well, okay, have fun with that. Best of luck to you.
What world do you live in? Of course there is an app for iPhone. Spotify has been there for years. I use iPhone and Spotify and it is great. $15 is really nothing for accessing all music. Also, music has been synced wirelessly for years through Spotify.