Rdio Streams Music from the Cloud
By Azam on June 3, 2010
Radio is music streamed to your ears from the cloud brought to you by the creators of KaZaa and Skype. Rdio is trying to bring the music streaming business model using cloud computing. The beauty is the ability to play on any device and internet access.
Rdio compares your iTunes collection to what it has in its own cloud-based music collection and then gives you access to those songs. You can use Rdio as social networking tool to see what your friends are listening to and sync music to your phone to enjoy when you are offline. You can share music via email, Facebook or Twitter. The company hopes to appeal to people who like to be tastemakers when it comes to keeping up with the latest music.
Rdio has deals with music companies EMI Music, Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, as well as many other independent aggregators of digital music
“The music industry’s transition to online distribution has been dominated by à la carte sales,” said Mike McGuire, analyst at Gartner’s Media Industry Advisory Services. “But, there’s a big opportunity for companies to create paid music services that are based in the cloud – especially as more and more consumers own smartphones allowing them to access their entire online music library via phone.”
The digital music market generated $1.87 billion in U.S. sales last year, according to Forrester Research Inc. in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Subscription music services accounted for $209 million of the total and may rise to $242 million this year, Forrester said.
The proliferation of smartphones capable of streaming music is giving technology companies and record labels new ways to reach listeners.
Categories : Media & Ads, Tech, WirelessTags : Atomic Ventures, Janus Friis, KaZaa, Niklas Zennstrom, Rdio, Skype