I’ve been advocating Spotify for some time now. As an audiophile of eclectic tastes it certainly suits me to have their enormous music collection at my fingertips and as a very late convert to the world of the iPod, the transportability of my settings and playlists supplemented my lack of a portable music player nicely for quite some time.
If you have not tried Spotify out, stop reading this post and go download it. It will change your view on digital music, or at the very least help you find your new favourite band.
For those still with me, the latest news is that Spotify have submitted an iPhone application to Apple’s App Store for approval. Allegedly only available to premium subscribers, those paying Spotify £120 a year for free access to all music with no adverts, the application is demonstrated best by Spotify themselves.
Spotify iPhone Application demo
The question that seems to abound on the ‘net is whether this application will be approved by Apple …
The approval process for the App Store does allow Apple to disbar any applications that are too similar in function to applications that are already being supplied with the device, ergo there is no point writing a new mail application, or a new calendar, unless you can deliver something markedly different. Will Apple use this clause as a reason to bar Spotify’s application, a clear competitor to its own iTunes platform, or will it simply see it as another strong horse in the App Store stable?
Only time will tell, and we should know the result in the next few weeks.
Personally, I am routing for Spotify. Not only are my tastes wide, but they change. £120/year for unlimited music seems fair, that’s less than the cost of an album a month. There are a lot of albums I would try out on a scheme like that, but far less that I would buy for £10 on the off chance they make it into my permanent rotation.
In the meantime, I’m back to my Richard Cheese playlist.
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