Tag: Apple Music

Has Apple Music Already Been Declared An Epic Fail?

Apple Music was set to become the next big thing.The thought of having millions of tracks available to stream, and that could be saved online, seemed like a recipe for success. However, a recent survey conducted by The New York Post showed that nearly half of the iOS users that enthusiastically downloaded the trial version of Apple Music have shockingly, stopped using it even before their trial period gets over.

The stats revealed that 48% of early Apple Music users have given up on the service while 52% are still using it. Of those 52%, nearly two-thirds said they were “extremely or very likely” to start paying for the service once it starts charging them money. This survey was conducted by MusicWatch and if we do assume that those 52% are going to stick to their word then Apple Music should have 3.8 million subscribers once the free trial ends.

Not bad right? But MusicWatch managing partner Russ Crupnick said that it should’ve had a larger user base considering how many Apple loyalists there are, all over the world.

“In terms of benchmarking Apple Music, 40 percent of iOS users are buying digital downloads from iTunes, suggesting trial of Apple Music could be higher,” he explained.

However, Apple lashed back at these statistics via The Verge, saying that 79% of the people who’ve signed up for the service, actually use it on a weekly basis. While we would like to believe them, lets hope that their retention rate converts into actual paid subscribers, proving that Apple Music won’t be an epic fail, after all.

August 19, 2015
Apple Wants to Create New Mobile Products for the Android Ecosystem

After announcing the release of Apple Music for Android, Apple has gone even further by posting a job listing, looking for a software engineers to create products for Android users.

This new position is reportedly not for the Apple Music but for new mobile products that Apple plans to launch for Android users. Some of the speculated apps that might be in for this project are – the iWork, iCloud, iMessage, Safari, iTunes etc. It is said that releasing iCloud on Android would give users another option to access their files.

However, it seems like Apple’s iOS is finally facing the Android challenge head-on by expanding its accessibility, especially after reports have shown them losing numbers in markets in USA and China. No further information is available on what these new mobile products are going to be.

Source: [tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://9to5mac.com/2015/08/05/apple-job-listing-android-apps/”]9to5[/tw-button]

August 8, 2015
Rumour: Apple is Set to Launch New Apple TV in September

As reports from Buzz feed suggest, Apple Inc will launch a new generation of Apple TV set-top boxes, in September. This new version is said to come with a new remote with touch-pad input, an increased on-board storage, and an operating system that will support Siri.

The Apple TV was last refreshed in 2013, and was expected to unveil a new version in June at its Annual Worldwide Developers Conference, but instead launched Apple Music. The company is rumoured to be announcing the unveiling of this new Apple TV along with the new iPhones.

The updated Apple TV will feature SIRI and an App Store.

The new version is said to launch with its own App Store and software development kit for app developers. However, Apple has declined to comment on any rumours or speculation.

Source: [tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://www.buzzfeed.com/johnpaczkowski/apple-will-debut-new-apple-tv-in-september#.htMnGxKB7″]Buzzfeed[/tw-button]

July 31, 2015
Facebook is Working on a Music Streaming Service Of Their Own

With Apple’s recent and successful launch of Apple Music, the Music streaming space has gotten really crowded. With companies like Spotify and Pandora already eating the pie, Facebook wants now a big chink of this space.

According to reports the social networking website has already tied up with various music labels and has already started showing music videos which are ad supported.

With reports of a Youtube-esque video service for Facebook already in the works, an all audio variant is expected to roll out later this year. It would be rather easy for Facebook to just acquire an already running service, say Spotify.

However, the folks over at Facebook are mum on the conversation and fail to add any new insight.

Source : [tw-button size=”small” background=”” color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://musically.com/2015/07/08/facebook-early-talks-audio-music-streaming-service/”]Musically[/tw-button]

July 9, 2015
Tech Highlights of the Week: Huawei Honor 7, Digital India Week And Much More

This week was loaded with new product releases and announcements from around the world. We have compiled a list of news that made the rounds.

Here are the top 10 highlights of the week:

Huawei Honor 7 Comes With a 20MP Camera, Priced At Rs 20,500

Huawei has unveiled their next Honor Smartphone, the Huawei Honor 7. The device comes in three variants that differ in connectivity and storage only. The three options are: A basic 16 GB model with LTE radio, another one with dual SIM dual standby LTE abilities, and the last is a flagship of the trio with 64GB of internal memory. It is priced at $322 (Rs 20,500). Click here to read more.

John Abraham Becomes HTC’s Brand Evangelist

HTC has been following the brand evangelist story for a couple of years. With Robert Downey Jr. taking the reins of the title globally, the new look and brand direction for HTC was formed. This was also a first step in their “Here’s to Change” campaign. On Tuesday, HTC unveiled its new jersey in partnership with Northeast United Football Club, a football team owned by John Abraham. The partnership goes into its second year as HTC remains the title sponsor for the team. Read about it here.

Dubai Plans On Constructing The First 3D Printed Building

Dubai, a city where something fresh is always being added to the skyline, may have found a way to make construction move even faster. On Tuesday, the Gulf commercial hub announced plans to construct the world’s first office building using 3D printer technology, adding another marvel to its collection of magnificent buildings. Read more about the epic idea here.

Narendra Modi Flags Digital India Campaign with Digital India Week

‘Make in India’ is an initiative that was started back in September 2014 by the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi. The principal objective of this initiative is to build manufacturing firms within India to generate more job opportunities and improve the skills of the people of India across different sectors like automobile, aviation, biotechnology, defence manufacturing, mining, oil and gas, ports, railways, textile and much more.

Narendra Modi has been named as the chairman of the Digital India Week, where he also unveiled the official logo of the campaign that seeks to transform India into a digital powerhouse. Read more about it here.

This Newly Developed 3D Fingerprint Scanning Technology Can Redefine Mobile Security

The world that we live in is surrounded by constant cyber threats and crimes, especially in the case of smartphones. You never know when your handset might get picked out from your pocket and be misused in many ways. Tech companies are aware of this fact, hence they are coming out with new innovations to prevent that from happening. We have retina scanning devices, highly secured passcodes, location tracking and more such measures. However, this new security technique will take smartphone security to another level. Read more about the epic 3D Fingerprint scanner here.

India to Become The Second Largest Smartphone Market By 2017

India, the world’s 7th largest country and with the second largest population in the world, may soon have one more tag to its name. According to a study conducted by Strategy Analytics, an international research firm, India is on the road to becoming the second largest smartphone market in the world by 2017. Click here to know more.

Xiaomi Is On A Roll; Sells 34.7 Million Smartphones In H1 2015

Xiaomi, from January to June 2015, has sold 34.7 million smartphones, thus proving to the world that it is more than just a company that is manufacturing generic slabs of hardware to the world. This number beat last years’ number by 33%, thus proving to its competitors that Xiaomi is here to stay, and for a long time. Read more here.

Apple Music Is Available For Rs 120 For A Single User In India

A few days back, Apple released the much-awaited iOS 8.4, and along with It, the much talked about Apple Music. The service arrived in India along with the iOS update, along with 100 more countries. Unexpectedly, the service is available in India for very low rates, especially when you compare it to what Apple is charging in the US. The streaming service has been priced at Rs.120 per month for a single user. You can also opt for a family with maximum six member plan at a discounted subscription of Rs.190 per month. In comparison, US subscribers will have to pay $9.99 (Rs.637) per month or $14.99 (Rs 918) per month for a family account. To know more, click here.

OnePlus Two May Sport a New Metal Body, Teases OnePlus CEO Liu Zuohu

In three weeks, OnePlus will launch its latest flagship phone, OnePlus Two. By now, we’ve seen many rumors and confirmed specifications for OnePlus Two. Today, on a post on Weibo, the popular Chinese microblogging website, OnePlus CEO Liu Zuohu has asked his followers to define “full metal”. While this could mean anything, the timing of this post seems to indicate a metal body for OnePlus Two. Click here to know more.

The Next iPhone May Finally Drop 16GB Base Model In Favor of 32GB

Given the fact that Apple does not include a microSD slot for expanding memory, a 16GB iPhone can get really cranked up with just a handful of games, apps and music. Apple also has issues regarding the iOS updates, which require an immense amount of free space to install. The company is even going to drastic measures to ensure that its entry-level devices can upgrade to newer versions of iOS by removing apps before installation to reclaim disk space, and then reinstalling them after the iOS update has ended. Rumor is, Apple is planning on dropping the 16GB model with the next iPhone. Read more about it here.

July 5, 2015
Apple Music Is Available For Rs 120 For A Single User In India

A few days back, Apple released the much-awaited iOS 8.4, and along with It, the much talked about Apple Music. The service arrived in India along with the iOS update, along with 100 more countries. Unexpectedly, the service is available in India for very low rates, especially when you compare it to what Apple is charging in the US. The streaming service has been priced at Rs.120 per month for a single user. You can also opt for a family with maximum six member plan at a discounted subscription of Rs.190 per month. In comparison, US subscribers will have to pay $9.99 (Rs.637) per month or $14.99 (Rs 918) per month for a family account.

Apple Music is slowly rolling out to some regions, and as promised, it is free to use for the first three months. Just enter your credit card details to sign up or if you already have your card on file in the AppStore, you’re good to go with the free trial.

The music service is built into a redesigned variant of the Music app on iOS based on Beats Music. Apple has also revamped its iTunes Radio and expanded the service to new countries. It has added a social media angle to it, making it an interactive feature for music lovers. Only artists will have their profiles, enabling them to post media including music samples and share content from other artists. The regular users can like or comment only using their iTunes accounts.

Apple is all set to revamp and replace its long forgotten ‘iTunes Ping’ with ‘Apple Music’. ‘iTunes Ping’ was a music social network service launched in September 2010 but had to be shut down two years later.

July 2, 2015
What We Can Learn From the Taylor Swift-Apple Controversy

Taylor Swift is currently one of the biggest music icons in the world, as evident from the fact that her last album sold more than four million copies worldwide and in all, she has won seven Grammy awards and 22 Billboard awards. So, it matters when one of the most influential music artists in the world says she has a problem with Apple Music, the new streaming service launched by Apple.

In her recent open letter to Apple, Swift explains why she would hold back her new album, 1989, from Apple Music. She wrote, “Apple Music will be offering a free 3 month trial to anyone who signs up for the service. Apple Music will not be paying writers, producers, or artists for those three months. I find it to be shocking, disappointing, and completely unlike this historically progressive and generous company.”

Swift’s open letter points to the statement given by Apple executive Robert Kondrk, who said that the company won’t pay the artists during the three month trial period. The company would later make it up to the artists by paying them higher amounts than its rival, Spotify. A few hours after Swift’s open later was published, Apple VP, Eddy Cue tweeted that the artists will be paid during the three month trial period, which Swift positively responded to.

We hear you @taylorswift13 and indie artists. Love, Apple

— Eddy Cue (@cue) June 22, 2015

Swift’s concern is in a right place. Most people nowadays want to access media without paying, which leaves services like Spotify and YouTube with no other option but to provide free streaming with advertisements. As a result, streaming generates less royalties than a CD sale or digital download would’ve generated.

Apple won’t pay the artists during the three month trial period of Apple Music

Although streaming would not affect the music sales of Swift or the likes, as she points out, it is “about the new artist or band that has just released their first single and will not be paid for its success..about the young songwriter who just got his or her first cut and thought that the royalties from that would get them out of debt.. but will not get paid for a quarter of a year’s worth of plays on his or her songs”.

Artists depend on the royalties generated from the sale of CDs and downloads. Their only source of income get affected due to the amount of money generated from streaming. Hence, artists and record labels are pushing for subscription based music services, which they believe will be more stable when it comes to generating royalties.

This is not the first time artists have spoken out against the streaming services. Recently, rapper Jay-Z launched his own streaming service, Tidal, which is said to be the first artist-owned streaming service. He criticized YouTube and Spotify for not giving enough money to the artists. In November 2014, Swift removed all of her old albums from Spotify over the issue of royalties.

Apple’s recent move is a temporary resolve, since it is in a position to pay the artists during the trial period. The success of Apple Music will be determined when people actually subscribe. To keep the music industry alive, a model has to be devised which would allow people to pay reasonable rates and at the same time allow artists to earn fair royalties in return. Higher rates can lead to piracy, which would again affect the artists. An effort has to be made to persuade people to subscribe to music services and support the artists. Till such things happen, artists have to speak out.

We like how Taylor Swift put it – “We don’t ask you for free iPhones. Please don’t ask us to provide you with our music for no compensation.”

Source : [tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://taylorswift.tumblr.com/post/122071902085/to-apple-love-taylor”]Taylor Swift’s Blog [/tw-button]

June 22, 2015
Apple Music Arrives in India on 30th June; Pricing Revealed
The world was recently abuzz with the recently held WWDC’ 15 in San Francisco and we now have more great news for Apple fans, especially in India. That’s right, Apple Music is set to launch in India by June 30th. The company at the event had stated that it would be released 100 other countries worldwide, now recent reports claim that India will be included in the list.

“We love music, and the new Apple Music service puts an incredible experience at every fan’s fingertips, all the ways people love enjoying music come together in one app — a revolutionary streaming service, live worldwide radio and an exciting way for fans to connect with artists.”

We first brought you the news that Apple Music will be launched and that it will be a universal app catering to three things:
- Apple Music: We will have access to all kinds of music, whether from iTunes or ripped from CDs.
- Apple Connect: This is a way for fans and artists to connect by sharing videos, lyrics, backstage videos etc.
- Apple Radio: We will be able to stream live music and have access to all kinds of tunes, on a global platform.
In addition to this, Siri will be synced in with the App and we will be able to ask Siri to play our favourite tracks or even find songs of a particular genre. The statement released by Apple press contact stated:

Siri is also dedicated to helping you enjoy great music and will help you have fun with Apple Music. Ask Siri to, “Play me the best songs from 1994,” or “What was the number one song in February 2011?”

While all this seemed too good to be true, we in India often read posts like these and felt disappointed with the fact that this might either not come to India at all, or might come in really late. Therefore, you would be pleased to know that this time around, India will have Apple Music by June 30th, at Rs.120 and Rs.180 (family pack) a month.

This spells good news for Indian users as Spotify still hasn’t managed to make its way to the Indian market. This doesn’t matter anymore, though. Apple Music will really change the face of streaming music and will fit in every users requirements. Jimmy Iovine, Record Producer, stated:

“Apple Music is really going to move the needle for fans and artists. Online music has become a complicated mess of apps, services and websites. Apple Music brings the best features together for an experience every music lover will appreciate.”

We couldn’t agree more and we look forward to June 30th, eagerly.[tw-button size=”small” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank”]Source[/tw-button] [tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”https://twitter.com/jayesh”]Twitter[/tw-button]
June 11, 2015
Apple Music Rivals Are Not Impressed

At the Worldwide Developers Conference last night, Apple introduced to the world its new music streaming service. Over the past few months, we’d heard multiple rumours that this service was in the works, and last evening, Apple finally threw the covers off.

There’s a lot going on with this service. You can use Apple Music to stream songs, listen the Beats 1 radio, watch music videos, follow your favourite artists. The company claims that they’ve managed to combine the best ways of consuming music, into one consolidated app. While this all sounds super, our first reaction to the Apple Music was, how is this going to affect its competitors?

Just like us, Apple Music rivals not only followed the event minute-by-minute, but also decided to comment on it.

Daniel Ek, CEO and Founder of one of the successful music service, Spotify, was the first to publicly snark Apple music. He tweeted a sardonic ‘Oh ok.’

The tweet was deleted minutes later, but the damage was done.

Rdio, an online music and radio streaming service, perhaps gave the most brutal response to Apple. They copied Apple’s old advertisement from 1981, and welcomed Apple to the party as a latecomer. The original Apple ad was released two weeks after the debut of IBM PC back in 1981 by Apple, in a way to ‘welcome’ IBM into the PC marketplace.

Welcome, Apple. Seriously. #applemusic pic.twitter.com/AnoeKZ5ZIa

— Rdio (@Rdio) June 8, 2015

Slacker Radio also sent out a similar message in a less hostile way, tweeting that Apple is too late for the race.

Great radio = artists + DJs + curation. Welcome to the party, @AppleMusic: http://t.co/LihSRb09kV #WWDC15 @Beats1 pic.twitter.com/4qmvfYuhKl — Slacker Radio (@SlackerRadio) June 8, 2015

Finally, 8tracks responded to an Apple critic.

HA, true…but we don’t need one celebrity DJ when we have millions of people like you making beautiful playlists. ???? https://t.co/IfyigzmEfq

— 8tracks (@8tracks) June 8, 2015

While it’s easy to conclude that Apple Music may not be the “revolutionary” service the company claims it is. The music service has, however, managed to consolidate various forms of music consumption into one single widget on our phones. Not only that, it will be available for Android and Windows, later this year.

With the absence of services like Spotify in India, we’re quite excited to find out if Apple Music will arrive in our country.

June 9, 2015
Apple Finally Introduces its Very Own Music Streaming Service

Apple has always been about building a secure, healthy ecosystem. They’re now bringing this philosophy to their new music streaming service. At the Worldwide Developers Conference, the company announced ‘Apple Music’, a service that seems to have the capabilities to put several successful music companies out of business. Provided it’s successful, of course.

On Apple Music, all the ways you love music can live together.

Here’s how the company plans to do it – with the new app, millions of tracks will be available to stream, and can be saved offline (bye-bye Spotify.) This library will also give recommendations an the playlists would be curated by popular musicians such as Drake, Will I Am and Pharrell.

At the launch, the company emphasised on how they’d like established, as well as emerging artists to interact with the users. For this, Apple introduced ‘Connect’, where artists can share pictures, music and messages with their audience. Fans can then comment, like, or share it via Messages, Facebook, Twitter and email. This feature takes SoundCloud a step ahead.

Lastly, an introduction that seems the most refreshing, is Apple’s new 24/7 global music radio station – Beats 1. With the radio feature, more than 100 countries worldwide will be listening in to programming and stations created by some of the world’s most popular musicians. It will have genres such as Indie rock, Hip-hop classical, etc.

Apple Music will be available 30th June onwards. For the initial three months, the service is available for free. After which, there will be a charge of 9.99$ per month. There is also a family plan providing the service for up to six family members, for $14.99 per month.

June 9, 2015
Apple Expected to Fine-Tune its Music Service

As the WWDC excitement continues, we can see that Apple is expected to make new announcements of its breakthrough in technology. The tech giants always make new disclosures at the Worldwide Developers Conference and this year, we hope to see the company’s new revamped streaming service, against the likes of Spotify and Pandora.

Apple’s acquisition of Beats for $3.2 billion had a reason last year in May. We can now see what the reason was. The company’s new streaming music service- Apple Music- will be based on the service of Beats Music. Explaining how Beats will reshape Apple’s digital music, the company has made a musician the main man for overhauling the music streaming service. Trent Reznor, frontman of Nine Inch Nails, who was the chief creative officer for Beats, had been playing a major role in designing the music app, along with two other Apple employees.

Sony Chief Executive, Doug Morris, who also shares a long history with Beats Co-Founder and Apple Music Boss, Jimmy Iovine, announced ‘It’s happening tomorrow’ to the audience at the Midem Music Conference in Cannes.

Apple plans to retain the idea of asking people their favourite genres of music when signing up. Not much detail was revealed by Morris, but it is expected to be priced at $9.99/month for individuals and $14.99/month for the family plan with a three-month free trial period with ads. Morris said that Apple’s entry into the paid subscription market would majorly shift the industry from downloads to streaming.

Morris said:

What does Apple bring to this? Well, they’ve got $178 billion dollars in the bank. And they have 800 million credit cards in iTunes. Spotify has never really advertised because it’s never been profitable. My guess is that Apple will promote this like crazy, and I think that will have a halo effect on the streaming business.

If the service is stashed along with the upcoming iOS 9 and is being offered for a free trial, this could guarantee millions of customers for Apple.

While iTunes had changed the way music was sold, the new streaming service will help Apple build an exclusive relationship with artists and labels. Apple has been approaching big name artists reportedly, like Taylor Swift, to sign up to guest DJ on a revamped iTunes Radio service, or enter into an exclusive streaming partnership.

June 8, 2015