Rdio Will Launch $3.99 Streaming Tier as Apple's Streaming Service Approaches

Wednesday May 13, 2015 9:23 PM PDT by Husain Sumra
Rdio is planning to launch a new streaming tier for $3.99 a month with specific limitations this Thursday, according to BuzzFeed. The news comes as Apple's new streaming service, a rebranded version of Beats Music that may be called Apple Music, gears up to launch next month.

rdio
Rdio says the service, called Rdio Select, will include two components: 1) Pandora-like streaming radio stations, without ads, and with the ability to skip ahead as often as you want, and 2) daily access to 25 songs of your choosing. Subscribers will be able to download the 25 songs and replace some or all (or none) of them each day, so long as the number doesn’t exceed 25.
Anthony Bay, Rdio's CEO, tells BuzzFeed that they chose 25 songs because it's "more than most users download in a day". He goes on to note that it also allows the company to not lose money at the price of $4 a month, saying that the company agrees with artist Taylor Swift that on-demand playback of music should not be free.

The move, according to Rdio, is an attempt to tap into a market that doesn't feel ready to pay $9.99 a month for streaming music. Similar to Rdio, Apple's new music streaming service will not offer a free tier. Apple plans on charging $9.99 a month for the service, which will have a focus on curated content. Apple's original plans for its new streaming service planned on, like Rdio, undercutting $9.99-a-month streaming services. Apple had reportedly wanted to offer its service for $5 a month and then $7.99 a month before backing down after resistance from record labels.

Earlier today, it was reported that it would incorporate social media tools for artists to share content with fans. The Cupertino company is also planning to offer a range of exclusive content from artists, which could use the new social media tools to do so. While Apple is still working on completing deals ahead of launch, it's still expected to debut at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June.

Tags: Rdio, buzzfeed.com, streaming music
45 comments


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69Mustang
56 months ago

"The move, according to Rdio, is an attempt to tap into a market that doesn't feel ready to pay $9.99 a month for streaming music."

Have to laugh at our American cousins. That price is just a tad more than the cost of a Burger King meal over here. You wouldn't even notice that amount coming out of your bank each month lol.


This is more about value than price. Just because something is affordable doesn't mean someone finds value in it. Take a streaming service, pack of cigarettes, and a movie ticket. In Chicago (just an example), all of these things are approximately the same price. All are elective choices and all have value to someone. One might find value in streaming service, but not cigarettes, or value in a movie ticket but not streaming.

Rdio's $4 service is for those who don't find value at $10 but can see the value at a lower cost. It's not about what's coming out of your bank account. It's about what you find valuable personally. Just like someone might find Burger King has more value (*throws up in mouth*).
Rating: 6 Votes
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MacrumoursUser
56 months ago

Spotify costs $9.99 a month... but so far they've only convinced 15 million people to pay for it.

Maybe $10 a month is too high.

Or maybe there are simply not many people who are willing to pay for music streaming.

Which is weird because I keep hearing that steaming is the future.


Streaming might have 1 000 000 000 songs to offer, but if it's 99.99999999% junk to my taste paying every month doesn't make sense to me if I spend same or less per year to download music.
Rating: 6 Votes
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Bot4Hire
56 months ago

The only thing I like about this service is the fact that there are no limits on skips. But other than that, it sounds lame. Not getting it.


As lame as Ping 2.0 courtesy of beats?
Rating: 5 Votes
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Ballis
56 months ago
The price is obviously to high if those are the numbers.
Rating: 5 Votes
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Michael Scrip
56 months ago



"The move, according to Rdio, is an attempt to tap into a market that doesn't feel ready to pay $9.99 a month for streaming music."

Have to laugh at our American cousins. That price is just a tad more than the cost of a Burger King meal over here. You wouldn't even notice that amount coming out of your bank each month lol.


Spotify costs $9.99 a month... but so far they've only convinced 15 million people to pay for it.

Maybe $10 a month is too high.

Or maybe there are simply not many people who are willing to pay for music streaming.

Which is weird because I keep hearing that steaming is the future.
Rating: 4 Votes
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kyjaotkb
56 months ago

I know everyone has their own musical tastes... but I doubt the catalog is keeping most people away from streaming.

Spotify has one of the largest music catalogs available with 30 million songs. Surely that's enough for a billion people.

And yet Spotify only has 15 million paying subscribers and 45 million free users.

That just seems kinda low for what is supposedly the biggest and most popular streaming service.


Well, keep in mind that the iTunes Music Store is the biggest music retailer in the world, launched in 2004, has attained, globally only 150-250m unique customers, with an enormous majority of them having ever paid $1-5 life-to-date. So 15m paying 9.99 each month + 45m generating a much lower annual ARPU but steered away from piracy is not bad at all - and it's growing 30-50% each year.
Rating: 3 Votes
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2457282
56 months ago

Streaming might have 1 000 000 000 songs to offer, but if it's 99.99999999% junk to my taste paying every month doesn't make sense to me if I spend same or less per year to download music.


I know everyone has their own musical tastes... but I doubt the catalog is keeping most people away from streaming.

Spotify has one of the largest music catalogs available with 30 million songs. Surely that's enough for a billion people.

And yet Spotify only has 15 million paying subscribers and 45 million free users.

That just seems kinda low for what is supposedly the biggest and most popular streaming service.


i have over 20,000 songs that i have downlaoded through the years. I don´t listen to most of them. I listen to them at first of course, but then moved on to something else. I create a playlist of 100 to 200 songs that I will listen to for a week sometimes longer and then switch. I dont like streaming because it doesnt work when I am taking the underground train to-from work. I dont like having to hit the skip button endlessly to get past songs i care nothing for. I do however, use itunes radio to hear the top 50 songs of the week in specific genres to find new music. I also use shazam to identify songs I hear in public spaces that I think I like. once a week i then sit down and download new material, creat new playlists and I am set for the next week or so.

I curate my own music and I pay for it. streaming means listening to someone elses playlist, which is fine on occasion to hear something new.
Rating: 3 Votes
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MacrumoursUser
56 months ago

i have over 20,000 songs that i have downlaoded through the years. I don´t listen to most of them. I listen to them at first of course, but then moved on to something else. I create a playlist of 100 to 200 songs that I will listen to for a week sometimes longer and then switch. I dont like streaming because it doesnt work when I am taking the underground train to-from work. I dont like having to hit the skip button endlessly to get past songs i care nothing for. I do however, use itunes radio to hear the top 50 songs of the week in specific genres to find new music. I also use shazam to identify songs I hear in public spaces that I think I like. once a week i then sit down and download new material, creat new playlists and I am set for the next week or so.

I curate my own music and I pay for it. streaming means listening to someone elses playlist, which is fine on occasion to hear something new.


Top 50 these days is not what I would call music.
Rating: 3 Votes
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josh995
56 months ago

"The move, according to Rdio, is an attempt to tap into a market that doesn't feel ready to pay $9.99 a month for streaming music."

Have to laugh at our American cousins. That price is just a tad more than the cost of a Burger King meal over here. You wouldn't even notice that amount coming out of your bank each month lol.


Why just the Americans? Where are you from? I'd bet the citizens of your country aren't exactly lining up to pay the equivalent of $10 a month for music streaming...
Rating: 3 Votes
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2457282
56 months ago

Top 50 these days is not what I would call music.


I usually listen to the Jazz, Alternative and Latin Top 50. Rarely listen to the Pop, Country, Rock, etc. lists. My days of bubble gum pop hits are way past me.
Rating: 3 Votes
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