by Dave Mainella
About a year ago, we wrote about Microsoft’s jump into streaming music with its Xbox Music platform. By offering a catalogue of 30 million songs for free on any Windows-based device, Microsoft hoped to capture some of Spotify and Pandora’s audiences while simultaneously driving sales of its own Windows devices. An ad-free subscription option further increased the Xbox Music appeal – for Windows users.
On Sunday, Microsoft announced the expansion of Xbox Music to make the service available for iOS and Android users, and on the web. The move brings Xbox Music out of the confines of Windows and to a broader general public that may, as a result, be more willing to give the service a chance.
Unlimited, free access to on-demand streaming of a necessarily huge catalogue of music on the web is certainly a nice draw. Simple features like playlist creation and an exploration tab make it easy to search for, find, discover, and save musical preferences. The intuitive web interface is available directly through your web browser, no download necessary. Users can easily browse the most recent and trending albums and songs.
The ability to hand pick and play specific songs is a bit more like Spotify than Pandora. But Microsoft plans on adding a Radio feature to the free web player, essentially offering a one-stop service to get the best of both those worlds.
The iOS and Android apps, while requiring the $10/month or $100/year purchase of a “music pass”, is a major play that brings the service to virtually every mobile user.
It’s this interconnectivity that Xbox Music is pushing, encouraging users to access music across devices – from laptops and tablets to phones and TVs. And this makes a lot of sense in anticipation of the Xbox One gaming and entertainment console.
“Xbox Music now, more than ever, powers music experiences between Windows 8, Xbox, Windows Phone, and now iOS, Android and the Web,” said Jerry Johnson, general manager of Xbox Music. “We’re also excited to connect artists with their fans on the most anticipated consumer product of the year when Xbox One launches Nov. 22.”
The idea of cross-device music streaming isn’t new. Both Spotify and Pandora are huge mobile players. And the combination of iTunes radio with Apple TV only furthers the competition. But if the Xbox One launch matches its anticipatory fanfare, establishing itself as a force of an entertainment console, then Xbox Music stands to benefit and succeed in growing its share of the music streaming market.
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