GigaOM » Beats

Report: Apple still talking about a music streaming service

Erica Ogg — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 14:52:52 +0000

Apple is talking with the team behind Beats Electronics about, well, something, according to Reuters. Apple CEO Tim Cook and SVP of Internet Services Eddy Cue either had an “informational” talk with Beats CEO Jimmy Iovine late last month, or discussed “a potential partnership involving Beats’ planned music-streaming service.” Or maybe both? Reuters cites three sources who confirmed the meeting, but concrete details on what was discussed are thin.

The meeting is interesting, of course, because of reports that began cropping up last fall that Apple is planning to add a web-based music streaming service to its iTunes music download empire. Reports at the time from Bloomberg indicated that Apple was exploring an ad-supported streaming service, was trying to land deals with some music labels, and that the service would launch as early as the first quarter of 2013.

Well, the end of the quarter is about three weeks away. If Apple is indeed having informational talks about the business model of Beats’ planned Daisy music service as recently as late February, as has been reported, the service is probably not going to be ready by late March. The same goes if the two are actually discussing a partnership: there’s probably not going to be a full-fledged service ready very soon if they’re still nailing down details.

Either way, as streaming-instead-of-owning music services continue to grow in popularity, Apple has to do something to adapt to the changing tastes of music lovers, whether that’s through an ad-supported music service, or something else. And depending on how much longer Apple waits or how much more time it takes to get such a service ready, it could end up being the latest one to the party.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
Subscriber content. Sign up for a free trial.

Beats buying up music service MOG

Ryan Kim — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 21:54:47 +0000

Beats Electronics, the headset manufacturer founded by rapper Dr. Dre and now majority owned by HTC, has reportedly bought online music service MOG though the deal is not final, according to a new report from AllThingsD. We confirmed yesterday that HTC had swapped term sheets with MOG in the last couple of weeks, after Business Insider first reported the rumored acquisition. Now, it looks like the acquisition is a go, though it is Beats doing the acquiring, not HTC.

The Verge quoted HTC saying it was not buying MOG directly, even though it invested $300 million in Beats last year for a 51-percent stake. It’s unclear exactly how Beats and HTC will use MOG, though Om reported a month ago that HTC was rumored to be in talks to launch its own music subscription service on its handsets. Having MOG and its deals with the music labels could help HTC or Beats quickly create their own music service.

MOG, which has raised $25 million, has struggled to compete against bigger rivals like Spotify and Rdio. The service has about 500,000 subscribers, far behind Spotify and its 3 million paying users. The company has been the subject of persistent acquisition rumors in recent months, but the company’s CEO David Hyman denied any such plans in February.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
Subscriber content. Sign up for a free trial.

HTC rumored to have bought MOG

Janko Roettgers — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 20:39:16 +0000

HTC’s Beats Audio unit may have bought music subscription service MOG, according to a rumor reported by Business Insider Monday. Insider writer Matt Rosoff based his report on a single source, but we have since also heard from a source that term sheets went back and forth between the two companies a few weeks ago.

MOG is one of the smaller music subscription services that has struggled to compete with the attention that Spotify has been getting since the launch of its U.S. service last year. There have been persistent rumors that MOG was up for sale in recent months, but the company’s CEO David Hyman denied any such plans in February. MOG didn’t respond in time with a comment for this article, but we will update once we hear back from them.

Om reported a month ago that HTC was rumored to be in talks to launch its own music subscription service on its handsets. Beats Audio founder Jimmy Iovine was apparently key to these plans, which may have been motivated in part by the success that wireless operator Cricket has been having with its own Muve music subscription service. Cricket announced earlier this year that Muve now has more than 500,000 paying subscribers.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
Subscriber content. Sign up for a free trial.

HTC deploys Beats-enabled Rezound for holiday push

Ryan Kim — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 21:21:12 +0000

With the high-end smartphone market filling up with a glut of choices from Apple, Motorola and Samsung, HTC introduced the Rezound on Thursday , a new flagship, media-focused LTE Android smartphone that will be the first HTC phone to feature Beats Audio technology in the U.S.

The Rezound will feature a dual-core 1.5 GHz processor, 4.3-inch HD (1280×720) display, 1 GB RAM, 16 GB internal storage with support for a 16 GB microSD card and an 8-megapixel camera. The smartphone will ride on Verizon’s LTE network and will run Android Gingerbread. HTC said the phone will be “Ice Cream Sandwich ready” meaning it will be prepped to quickly upgrade to Android 4.0 when it becomes available, meaning customers will probably get it “early next year.”

The device will be the first to incorporate Beats Audio technology in the U.S. following HTC’s purchase of a majority stake in Beats Electronics in August. Verizon Wireless said the phone will retail for $299 with a two-year-contract and will go on sale Nov. 14.

The Rezound will help keep HTC in the conversation this holiday season as smartphone buyers consider their choices, from the iPhone 4S to Samsung’s Galaxy S II devices and the Galaxy Nexus, which will be the first to run Android 4.0, the latest version of the Android operating system. There’s also Motorola’s Droid Razr, a powerful LTE Android smartphone that will also run on Verizon. HTC was the top-selling 4G phone maker in the U.S. in the third quarter, said HTC CEO Peter Chou, and it’s looking to continue its success with the Rezound.

“The (Rezound) is a phone that brings you closer to everything you love. It’s a phone that gives you the best combined sights and sounds experience of any smartphone on the market.”

Verizon customers will be inundated with options this holiday season, with almost all the top devices running on its network. It will be interesting to see who comes out on top considering there’s still a limited number of consumers in the market for smartphones at any given time, even a busy period like the holidays.

The Rezound will try to compete by emphasizing top-notch media consumption and capture. The phone will feature enhanced audio tuning from Beats, which should affect not just music but all forms of audio from talking to gaming. The big 720p screen will display crisp movies while the camera will produce 1080p video. The camera will have a f/2.2 aperture for good low-light capture. There’s also additional camera features like action burst, instant capture, panorama and effects like slow motion.

We’ve pointed out the challenges ahead for HTC as it competes against Samsung in the Android Market and now faces Nokia in the nascent Windows Phone 7 market. The company seems to be focusing on slicing up the smartphone market and going after niches. While it didn’t say it, its purple-colored Rhyme is clearly targeting women, while the Rezound goes after music lovers. It’s a recognition, said NPD analyst Ross Rubin, that many of the smartphones are competing along the same lines now with similar features.

I’m still not sure if HTC and its Beats integration will break out and close the distance on Samsung. HTC has already forecast that its shipments for the final quarter of 2011 will be flat or possibly down from the third quarter. The Beats message is nice for a certain group of music lovers, but the idea that it will immediately transform HTC into a lifestyle brand seems like a stretch. But overall, the phone is still very easy on the eyes, in a Droid Incredible way, with red accents against a jet black body and a sculpted soft back. And it’s got almost all the specs you need to stay competitive, including a muscular processor, LTE and a 720p display. It’s all very good on paper. But at this point, I think I’m still more swayed by the Galaxy Nexus and the Droid Razr on the Android side and the iPhone 4S, which could mean trouble if other Verizon customers feel the same way.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
Subscriber content. Sign up for a free trial.