Google’s New Music Service Slated to Arrive by Christmas
For quite awhile now, Apple has been the front-runner when it comes to downloadable music content from all of your favorite artists (and some you never heard of). They also offer movies, television shows, podcasts, games, and literally almost any form of electronic entertainment the general public could wish for. And they have done this virtually unimpeded thanks to the seemingly invariable desire of artists to reach a consumer audience that has more or less given up on physical manifestations of their media. Of course, there are free music-sharing websites, although they are largely illegal (see Napster), and a lot of networks are now offering episodes of their shows online the day after airing (sometimes with added value in the form of supplemental webisodes). But by and large, no one has been able to shake Apple’s toehold on the worldwide web of music. Until now.
Google, it seems, has deemed it time to topple the industry giant, and they plan to do so by launching their own unique music service to rival top-cow iTunes. Incredibly, reports indicate that this could happen as early as Christmas of this year, although it really should come as no surprise considering the launch of the Android, which has thus far been the only real challenger to the iPhone (sorry, Blackberry). Of course, the service (dubbed Google Audio by some, Google Music by others, but officially remains as yet unnamed) will be closely linked to the Android, much as iTunes is linked to the iPhone. Android users can currently download music in the form of MP3s from Amazon (not the best integration of components), but with Google’s search engine capabilities and their already well-known music search feature, they are well situated to launch an operation that will surely give Apple a run for its money.
And while many might be prone to speculate that Apple’s heretofore unchallenged negotiations with record labels will cushion the blow of a major competitor, anonymous sources at Google have let it slip that preliminary talks with labels have produced a lot of enthusiasm on both sides. This move will do nothing but good things for both producers and artists, who will no doubt enjoy a jump in sales as Android users take advantage of all the tunes they were unable to get before. Beyond that, competition will probably allow labels to up their prices for rights to desirable albums and other special offerings. In fact, Apple’s loss will be their gain.
Apple, who recently launched iTunes 10 to tepid reviews, may have to rethink their strategy if Google’s service turns out to be everything it’s hyped to be. But with limited information available to support these claims, it’s anybody’s guess at this point how the Google offering will fare, or if it will even meet the proposed delivery date at the end of this year. One thing is certain, though. If Google doesn’t take a slice of Apple’s pie, someone is going to, and sooner rather than later.
Carol Montrose writes for a Factoring website in the UK. Learn more about how factoring can help save your business time and money.
