BackApple Music on Android a test for local music streaming apps
Apple's strengths lie in playlists, latest sound tracks, user interface but a subscription based model can be a hurdle
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Bengaluru: Apple Music’s quiet arrival on Android devices in India last week could spell trouble for leaders in the country’s nascent, but crowded, music-streaming market.
Apple Inc. has started testing its paid music-streaming service—Apple Music—across the world, including in India. Users can sign up to access its vast catalogue of 30 million songs and the curated radio station Beats Radio using credit cards.
Music can be streamed for free in the first three months, after which it becomes an on-demand paid service.
The company had in June launched the music service on its own mobile operating system iOS.
By pricing its offering at ₹ 120 a month, almost at par with local firms, which charge around ₹ 110 such as Saavn Llc, Gaana.com (Times Internet Ltd) and Airtel Wynk (Bharti Airtel Ltd), Apple is clearly targeting India’s value-conscious consumers.
Saavn declined to comment, while the others did not respond to Mint’s requests seeking comment.
Analysts say that the Android interface will help Apple make deep inroads into the vast majority of Internet users on smartphones in India that are mostly powered by Google Inc.-owned mobile operating system.
“It’s a hook for Android users to enter the iOS ecosystem," said Neil Shah, research director at Counterpoint Research.
In the quarter that ended in September, roughly 93% of India’s 190 million smartphone users were on Android devices, data from Counterpoint showed. In contrast, barely 3% used iOS.
Apple is not the only established brand to throw its hat into the online music-streaming ring.
Google too entered the fray last week by launching a standalone music app, YouTube Music. It is not clear when Google is going to launch this service in India.
Though the music-streaming services account for a minuscule portion (barely 1%) of the music listening in India, the business is likely to gather steam as more people get online using inexpensive mobile devices.
That has attracted a number of global companies, such as Guvera Ltd and Rdio Inc., to the country, some of whose businesses are deeply shaken by users shifting to Apple in other markets.
Rdio, a five-year-old streaming services company, has sought for bankruptcy protection and is in the process of selling its assets to online music radio company Pandora Media Inc.
Pandora Media itself is mired in huge losses, amid a declining user base.
Since launching in June, Apple Music has already seen some success globally with 6.5 million paying users and is the second largest behind Spotify AB, which has 20 million paying users.
However, it is this subscription-based business model which could put the company at a disadvantage to its local competitors in India.
The subscription model would limit Apple’s appeal in countries such as India, said Simon Dyson, practice leader of music industry at research firm Ovum. “I would doubt if the leading services feel too much of athreat from Apple."
Indian firms mostly acquire users by offering music free online and make money through advertisements. Users will have to pay a monthly subscription fee if they want to download music or to listen without ads.
While Apple’s strengths lie in its curated playlists, collection of latest international soundtracks and a slick user interface, it needs to add heft by striking more partnerships with Indian content providers, which most local companies already have in place. It also needs to provide payment options other than credit cards to reach a wider user base.
In spite of these hurdles, Apple Music cannot be brushed aside, say analysts.
“Apple is a big brand with a big reputation, and so, the dust is yet to settle enough to see just how big an impact Apple Music is going to have outside of its core markets," said Dyson.
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