Apple unveiled its long-awaited streaming music service on Monday, entering a crowded market for online music that already includes Spotify, Amazon and Google, as the company seeks to re-exert its dominance in digital music.
The launch at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco was introduced by the rapper Drake. “This is something that simplifies everything for the modern musician like myself, and the modern consumer like you,” he said.
Apple Music, as it’s known, was built by the team behind the Beats Music service that Apple acquired as part of its $3bn purchase of music-tech firm Beats Electronics in 2014.
“2015, music industry is a fragmented mess. Do you wanna stream music? You can go over here. If you wanna stream video, you can check some of these places out. If you wanna follow some artists, there’s more confusions with that,” said Beats co-founder Jimmy Iovine as he introduced Apple Music on-stage at WWDC.
“So I reached out to Apple executives Tim Cook and Eddy Cue and said: ‘Guys, can we build a bigger and better ecosystem with the elegance and simplicity that only Apple can do?’ … All the ways you love music, all in one place, and that place is in almost a billion hands all around the world already: one single app on your iPhone.”
The service will launch on June 30 in over 100 countries for $10 a month, along with a 6-member family subscription for $15 a month. As an introductory promotion, Apple will make the first three months free for everyone, with support for Android set to roll out in the coming months.
Firstly, Apple Music adds new features to enhance your listening music experience. By curating music, recommending playlists and albums based on your interests, and introducing new music. The service also extends to music videos and the ability to initiate song play using Siri.
Additionally, Beats 1, a 24-hour, 7-days a week internet radio station broadcast from three different cities – New York, Los Angeles, and London – and curated by hand will be included in the cost of the service.