Spotify Vs. Radio Vs. Beats Music - The Streaming Wars
A new phrase i've begun to hear a lot of lately is "the streaming wars." Streaming music services are still a bit of an up-and-coming, with services like Spotify and Rdio battling it out for dominance. The newest player to the game is Beats Music (also the makers of the popular beats headphones). With Beats Music set to launch January 21 (as a paid subscription service), Spotify and Rdio have have now countered by offering free ad-supported unlimited listening to their offerings, leaving listeners with almost no incentive to play for monthly plans (besides going ad-free)
The question this raises is what happens when these services begin undercutting each other? Undercutting, by it's nature seems to be a linear movement, where one can't go back and make changes back in the direction they were originally without a mass exodus of angry listeners. And where does it stop? And furthermore, who wins and loses here? The listeners win (at least short term), because they have to spend less, or even no money to still enjoy streaming the music they enjoy.
What happens to the bands/artists who have music available for streaming? It seems they would probably be paid on the ad-supported scale and make considerably less than the very small amount they are making currently through streaming. For those at the top, I could see this being an inconvenience, but musicians who are in the working-class category could take a big hit if undercutting goes too far. On a personal note, I have quite a bit of music available for streaming, and although it's not a significant source of income, it certainly does help fill in the cracks. If my streaming payments took a dive, I would definitely feel it.
And what happens to the streaming services themselves? It seems we're still a bit too early in the game to predict the final outcomes, but certainly the best services will rise to the top and the rest will dwindle down and fade away. But will the best continue to stay on top? If artists start losing too much money with streaming, will they remove their music from the streaming marketplace and try and find another way? Where will the streaming services be then?
It seems like really looking at the situation as a whole shows it's complexity and seems to raise more questions than it answers. There are a lot of different parties involved (the service providers, the investors, the artists, the labels, and the listeners) and each is trying desperately to contribute it's own point of view into the conversation. And so, I sit here listening to some music and wondering what in store for the great streaming wars of 2014. Hopefully, less questions and more answers.
The question this raises is what happens when these services begin undercutting each other? Undercutting, by it's nature seems to be a linear movement, where one can't go back and make changes back in the direction they were originally without a mass exodus of angry listeners. And where does it stop? And furthermore, who wins and loses here? The listeners win (at least short term), because they have to spend less, or even no money to still enjoy streaming the music they enjoy.
What happens to the bands/artists who have music available for streaming? It seems they would probably be paid on the ad-supported scale and make considerably less than the very small amount they are making currently through streaming. For those at the top, I could see this being an inconvenience, but musicians who are in the working-class category could take a big hit if undercutting goes too far. On a personal note, I have quite a bit of music available for streaming, and although it's not a significant source of income, it certainly does help fill in the cracks. If my streaming payments took a dive, I would definitely feel it.
And what happens to the streaming services themselves? It seems we're still a bit too early in the game to predict the final outcomes, but certainly the best services will rise to the top and the rest will dwindle down and fade away. But will the best continue to stay on top? If artists start losing too much money with streaming, will they remove their music from the streaming marketplace and try and find another way? Where will the streaming services be then?
It seems like really looking at the situation as a whole shows it's complexity and seems to raise more questions than it answers. There are a lot of different parties involved (the service providers, the investors, the artists, the labels, and the listeners) and each is trying desperately to contribute it's own point of view into the conversation. And so, I sit here listening to some music and wondering what in store for the great streaming wars of 2014. Hopefully, less questions and more answers.
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Right now i'm listening to:
Innocence (Electric Youth)
