When considering streaming Internet music services, consumers now have a variety of sites from which to choose. It appears that new sites are popping up everyday each with different prices, benefits, and drawbacks. Some of the deciding factors for deciding on the music service are accessibility, costs, and music selection. The public will become more aware of the key players in the market in addition to their pros and cons as the need for music on-demand grows. Fortunately for everyone involved, technology advances and competition will most likely keep prices low while more features become available.
Rdio, a streaming music service spawned by the founders of Skype, has just the right arsenal to keep the competition (e.g., Pandora, Last.fm, Rhapsody) at bay. For starters, Rdio offers listeners two subscriptions with the only difference being price and connectivity. The subscriber who pays $4.99 will be able to access the music inventory from the pc only. For $9.99, the subscriber is accessing the music from not only a pc but also mobile devices. For now, Rdio offers about 5 million songs to listeners and has plans to expand the library in the future. With a subscription to Rdio, listeners are able to share music and playlists with friends and family on Facebook as well.
With the growing selection of streaming music services entering the market, a little research will help determine the most suitable site for satisfying the needs and wants of the consumer. In this process, some consumers may find that music on-demand is not for them at all as they will not own the music but only have access a music library for the duration of the subscription. On-demand services will of course take some getting used to just as consumers warmed up to CDs after cassettes and mp3s years later. When consumers are ready, Rdio should be first in the line of consideration.
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