VentureBeat reports that Sony will be bringing its "Music Unlimited" streaming service to the iPhone and iPod touch within the next three months, looking to make inroads into Apple's ecosystem that has been dominated on the music side by iTunes.

The electronics company will offer a free iPhone and iPad app for Music Unlimited at some point this quarter, Tim Schaaff, head of Sony Entertainment Network said today at a small CES media gathering.

Additionally, the iOS app will offer offline caching for subscribers to Sony’s service, allowing users to save their playlists for listening when away from a network connection.

Sony introduced its Music Unlimited service nearly a year ago and garnered some attention when a company executive suggested that Sony Music could pull its content from the iTunes Store if Music Unlimited proved successful, although another Sony executive disputed that notion soon after.

sony music unlimited ios
Sony's Music Unlimited app for iOS (Source: The Verge)

As a subscription service, Apple would take a 30% cut of a revenue from subscriptions generated through an iOS app from Sony. But Apple's scaled-back subscription rules that went into effect last year would allow Sony to still offer an app without having to share revenue with Apple as long as the app itself does not allow subscription signups and does not contain any external links to sign up for service outside of the app.

Top Rated Comments

Nobita Avatar
168 months ago
Don't they realise that people wants to buy and download music? Isn't that the whole point of iTunes store? Go and watch Jobs's keynote on youtube.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
websyndicate Avatar
168 months ago
How does this stack up against Pandora and Spotify?

Really its 2 different services. Pandora is like radio you pick a station. Spotify/Sony music you pick any song you want
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ivan P Avatar
168 months ago
whats up with the giant CARRIER at the top left? its an iPod touch.

It's called a mock-up.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Larrywb Avatar
168 months ago
I'm happing with buying the music I really like, listening to radio in car, and listening to Pandora at home. I don't see a need for Spotify or Sony for myself.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
*LTD* Avatar
168 months ago
I welcome competition. I don't rent my music, but it's nice to have the choice. Also drives prices down. Competition is good. Waiting for Google Music to appear.

Bryan
The "competition is good" mantra, even repeated ad infinitum, carries little to no meaning when the competition just isn't viable.

All this sort of competition achieves is waste and redundancy.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dvwtwo Avatar
168 months ago
I don't get it. All these minor also-ran music services - how many subscribers can they possibly have? Who's using them?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

18 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Wednesday November 27, 2024 5:05 am PST by
Apple is set to release iOS 18.2 in early December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. There are a handful of new non-AI related feature controls incoming as...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Rectangle Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Already Rumored to Have These 8 New Features

Wednesday November 27, 2024 12:19 pm PST by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch for 10 more months, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. An imaginative iPhone 17 Pro concept based on rumors Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models so far: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro ...
iphone 16 pro models 1

12 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 17

Friday November 29, 2024 5:17 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we sometimes get rumored feature leaks so far ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different – already we have some idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you plan to skip...
General Black Friday Deals 24 Blue Snowmen

The Best 50+ Black Friday Apple Deals Still Available on AirPods, iPads, MacBooks, and More

Thursday November 28, 2024 1:01 pm PST by
Black Friday 2024 is over, but you can still find great deals on numerous Apple devices this weekend. Right now, this includes big savings on AirPods, Apple Watch, MacBook Air, iPad, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running. Specifically, in...
new streaming black friday

Black Friday Streaming Deals Include Big Savings on Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, and Peacock

Wednesday November 27, 2024 7:30 am PST by
We've been focusing on deals on physical products over the past few weeks, but Black Friday is also a great time of year to purchase a streaming membership. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members this week, including Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, and Peacock. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link...
airpods pro 2 gradient

AirPods Pro 3 Expected Next Year: Here's What We Know

Thursday November 28, 2024 3:30 am PST by
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch sometime in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for. Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: iPhone 17 Designs Revealed!

Friday November 29, 2024 9:34 am PST by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we discuss the recently leaked design of the iPhone 17 "Air" and iPhone 17 Pro. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos Earlier this week, a report from The Information's Wayne Ma revealed that the iPhone 17 Air will have a thickness of between 5mm and 6mm, which would make it the thinnest iPhone ever. In comparison, iPhone ...
new streaming black friday

Cyber Monday Streaming Deals Include Big Savings on Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, and Peacock

Friday November 29, 2024 5:38 am PST by
Black Friday is over, but you can still find great savings on streaming memberships this weekend as we head into Cyber Monday. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members, including Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, and Peacock. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a...