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Apple's Pandora-like iRadio Service to Launch in 2013?

Thursday January 3, 2013 7:21 pm PST by Husain Sumra
BTIG analyst Richard Greenfield is predicting that Apple will debut its long-rumored Pandora-like iRadio service to complement iTunes at some point in 2013. Previously, there were reports that Apple and the major music labels weren't close in negotiations, but Greenfield says they're still negotiating on song catalogs.
"Consumer behavior (is) increasingly shifting toward access to a music catalog from ownership of specific songs. We expect iRadio to be incorporated into the iTunes iOS app with personalized radio functionality akin to Pandora, integrated with iTunes to purchase music and other music related content such as concert information/tickets/merchandise via Live Nation (LYV) and Ticketmaster."
Back in October, Bloomberg reported that Apple and music labels had re-entered intense negotiations and iRadio was set to debut in early 2013. CNET then reported in December that the sides were far apart because Apple's terms left the labels "cold."

Apple SVP of Internet Services and Software Eddy Cue is considered Apple's "master negotiator" for content deals, so any potential negotiations with music labels would likely go through him. Greenfield also predicts that Apple's long-rumored Apple TV won't debut in 2013 because of content restrictions.

[ 143 comments ]


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netvvork
80 months ago
oh lord

they need to get itunes, itunes store, and itunes match working right first. the whole "it just works" thing has not been true for so long now. just today the mobile itunes store was making me want to punch babies because it took almost 5min to load my "purchased" list on my iphone. this is not downloading the list, mind you. this is just so i could look at it. sheesh. the reasons why i fell in love with apple are starting to stretch thin.
Rating: 22 Votes
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rmhop81
80 months ago

Confused as to what the hell the point of this would be...


Imagine streaming all content you own on iTunes like how pandora works but with music u own. Cutting out random songs u don't wanna hear

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they need to get itunes, itunes store, and itunes match working right first. the whole "it just works" thing has not been true for so long now. just today the mobile itunes store was making me want to punch babies because it took almost 5min to load my "purchased" list on my iphone. this is not downloading the list, mind you. this is just so i could look at it. sheesh. the reasons why i fell in love with apple are starting to stretch thin.


Punch babies? Man you're mature
Rating: 14 Votes
Avatar
\-V-/
80 months ago

they need to get itunes, itunes store, and itunes match working right first. the whole "it just works" thing has not been true for so long now. just today the mobile itunes store was making me want to punch babies because it took almost 5min to load my "purchased" list on my iphone. this is not downloading the list, mind you. this is just so i could look at it. sheesh. the reasons why i fell in love with apple are starting to stretch thin.

You might want to consider upping your medication if Apple is causing you to maim infants. :)
Rating: 8 Votes
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iPhoneApple
80 months ago
Excited for this!
Rating: 6 Votes
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skysailing
80 months ago
Confused as to what the hell the point of this would be...
Rating: 4 Votes
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adversus
80 months ago
I have to admit, I have fired up iTunes (on devices or desktop) maybe twice in the last year and a half. I've been using Spotify almost exclusively, and have saved so much money paying only $9 a month instead of $50-60 a month on buying albums.

If I can't make play lists and listen to songs I want to listen to without having just general radio stations... not interested.
Rating: 4 Votes
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mtrctyjoe
80 months ago
Pandora?

OK, not sure I buy into a Radio Service - I want music on demand. Search for an artist and play the music - not some radio service. Apple needs to compete with Spotify - not Pandora.

I have not used iTunes in a couple of years for Music... I stopped using it because of Spotify and music on demand - not Pandora's Radio Stations ... (sigh)
Rating: 3 Votes
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cxny
80 months ago
sorry Apple but Spotify has you beat, they even have a better interface/App than you and you had a 13 year head start!
Rating: 2 Votes
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iChrist
80 months ago

It is saddening to see radio as it was intended to be reduced to paid songs, playlists, compressed music listened to with isolation headphones. Because radio is live broadcast, radio is personalities, radio is journalism, radio is voice, radio is opinions, radio is knowledge, radio is learning. Learning also about the music from expert presenters.



Radio is those jacka$$es from Australia and the roach eating contest and the pee holding contest that get people killed. It's morons in the morning and bigots on the lower end of the dial.

Great personalities. NPR, KCRW, and BBC etc have streaming apps and podcasts. Radio can die.

:apple:
Rating: 2 Votes
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BigMcGuire
80 months ago

I have to admit, I have fired up iTunes (on devices or desktop) maybe twice in the last year and a half. I've been using Spotify almost exclusively, and have saved so much money paying only $9 a month instead of $50-60 a month on buying albums.

If I can't make play lists and listen to songs I want to listen to without having just general radio stations... not interested.


Same. I started out every month going, ok, I'm not going to buy a ton of songs. By the end of the month, I bought easily $30-$50 worth of songs. Hear something I like? I had to add it to iTunes. $1.29 or $.99. Adds up pretty quickly.

Now? Spotify or MOG. I like MOG because I can use it on my Chromebook. But I've spent 100% of my time listening to those (just paying for one at a time) for the last 6 months. Great way to find new music.

Being the IT guy for most of my family - I've noticed that everyone uses Spotify. I'm talking 30+ people that I know. Every single one of them use Spotify. Out of my x Facebook contacts, I'd say 90%+ use Spotify. I think it's retarded that the main players (Microsoft, Apple, Google) haven't caught on this streaming thing yet.

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Yep, iTunes Match is better than just regular streaming. Not only do you get to play your entire music library from anywhere with instant playing (like regular streaming) but you also get the download to your device so you don't have to keep downloading to your device all the time and using up your data. Please you can delete them at any time.

I have it turned on my Mac, iPhone, iPad and Apple TV and the whole system works great! Even smart playlists and genius matches work now and are kept in sync.

iTunes Match is one of my favorite features of iOS/OSX.


I'll take true STREAMING over that. I used to be like you and rely heavily on iTunes match on my iPhone but my 30+GB music library filled my 16GB iPhone pretty quickly. I'd have to constantly be deleting music.

The posters here have it right. Spotify is king and is eating the $$$ while the major players are wondering what's going on.

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not a big fan of pandora. I hate have to listen to a predetermined play list.


Part of why I like Spotify so much is that it introduces me to similar music. Yeah, I have a HUGE music library (30+GB). Well, huge to me. And having listened to it for the last 10 years .... I really could use some new music. After spending early 2012 wasting so much $ on $1.29/$.99 music, Spotify was a GREAT opportunity. I could listen to new music, get new artists, and not have to buy every damn song. Spotify has my business, and my wife's business, and pretty much everyone I know's business.
Rating: 2 Votes

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