Apple finds itself in an unusual position: playing catch-up. Now that most people like streaming their music more than downloading it, Apple is finally launching its own streaming service, which has an uphill battle ahead.
The service, called Apple Music, will be a relaunch of Beats Music, which it bought for $3 billion a year ago. It will include your downloads, streaming radio and the on-demand music service in a single mobile app.
According to The Verge, Apple announced that the service will cost $9.99 a month for a single user, while a family plan for up to six users will be available at $14.99. It will be available for iOS devices on June 30 and for Android in the fall.
“We’ve had a long relationship with music,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said at the Worldwide Developers Conference today in San Francisco. “And music has had a rich history of change, some of which we’ve played a part in.”
Variety reports that the social media part of the service will be called “Connect,” which allows users to connect with artists. The radio part will be called “Beats One,” which will be a live streaming station, with on-air personalities based in Los Angeles, New York and London.
Apple did confirm that they did try to get record labels to agree to help them lower the monthly subscription fee, but that didn’t happen. Without that lower-cost distinction, the Apple service will have to figure out some way to stand out among the crowd. The company is refusing to offer a free option, which has helped Spotify stay at the top of the streaming pack.
screenshot from YouTube video
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