Katie Marsal
A Pandora-like streaming music service from Apple reportedly remains in limbo after talks with Sony hit what has been called a "last-minute snag."
The details come from "sources close to the situation" who spoke with the New York Post. They said that Sony/ATV, the world's largest music publisher, couldn't reach an agreement wih Apple on a per-song rights fee.
Such rights are usually a fraction of a cent per stream, but Sony/ATV was allegedly seeking a higher royalty rate from Apple.
But Apple is seeking more flexible licensing than the deals that the current dominant Internet radio service, Pandora, has inked with record labels. Apple's licenses would allow users to play a selected artist more times than Pandora, and would allow the company to point people to the iTunes Store to generate music sales.
"While Pandora serves up songs based on algorithms, Apple's talks with the labels involves an element of promotion based on what music labels are pushing in any one month, sources said," the Post reported.
Apple's apparent Internet radio plans were first reported earlier this month by The Wall Street Journal. It was revealed that Apple is looking to create a streaming radio service to rival current offerings like Pandora.
The new radio service from Apple is expected to focus on virtual stations to play music on a Web browser or through dedicated applications on iOS devices. Advertisements from Apple's iAd platform are expected to be incorporated into the service in exchange for free user access.
Andrew Orr
Amber Neely
William Gallagher
Christine McKee
AppleInsider Staff
45 Comments
Wasn't Pandora one of those big highlight apps, introduced at one of the Apple keynotes? Personally I don't think there's any such thing as a long-term Apple applications partner. I believe at some point Apple will develop their own version of any popular feature rather than depend on any "partners". It's in their DNA to control their platform as tightly as it's makes sense to do. Pandora shouldn't be surprised.
EDIT: I missed that the Apple service is expected to be ad-supported. Will users have to agree to be served targeted ads in the TOS? It will be interesting to see how it's accepted if that happesn. Personally I signed up for Pandora One, paying a yearly fee to avoid ads.
Flame on Sony!
Why can't Apple be more reasonable and reach an agreement with Sony? Why does Apple have to be so stubborn and arrogant?
Why do Apple users have to be such fanboys?
I was just about to buy an iPhone 5, but now, with no internet radio service, this is the final straw, and I'm gonna have to go with a Samsung Galaxy S III, instead.
And believe me, when I tell you that I am no Apple hater. I've been using Apple's products since 1971, and I have 13 Apple desktops and 9 Apple laptops at home. Steve Jobs wouldn't have let this happen.
Why can't Apple be more reasonable and reach an agreement with Sony? Why does Apple have to be so stubborn and arrogant?
Why do Apple users have to be such fanboys?
I was just about to buy an iPhone 5, but now, with no internet radio service, this is the final straw, and I'm gonna have to go with a Samsung Galaxy S III, instead.
And believe me, when I tell you that I am no Apple hater. I've been using Apple's products since 1971, and I have 13 Apple desktops and 9 Apple laptops at home. Steve Jobs wouldn't have let this happen.
LOL!!
/s /s /s /s
:)
I'm sorry, but I just don't get the purpose of this. I prefer to own what I pay for, I guess.
Yeah, Pandora, yeah, whatever the other one is, we already have the radio in iTunes. Hundreds upon hundreds of stations. And they're free. Why would I use this thing?