Sony Music CEO confirms Apple’s new music streaming service ahead of WWDC

It seems to be Apple is cooking up their new music streaming service, at least according to Sony Music CEO Doug Morris. He confirmed rumours about this service just ahead of WWDC keynote tomorrow. Morris made the announcement while speaking at the Midem music industry conference in Cannes, France and while he didn’t talk about the specifics, it definitely points to a high probability that a music related announcement is coming.

Morris believes that Apple’s entry into the music streaming game might boost the business for the company and its competitors. “My guess is that Apple will promote this like crazy and I think that will have a halo effect on the streaming business,” he said. 

Source: VentureBeat | Via: MacWorld

SoundCloud signs royalty agreement with Merlin to gain access to 20,000 indie labels

SoundCloud you probably heard of or are already using but we’re sure Merlin might be a new name to you. Merlin works with 20,000 indie labels and distributors to work out licensing and loyalty deals, which is what they’ve done with SoundCloud. This will bring labels like Beggars Group (Vampire Weekend), Domino (Animal Collective), Secretly Group (Bon Iver), Kontor Records (Tiësto), and a lot more to SoundCloud’s streaming service. These musicians will also be offered compensation when you play their music.

SoundCloud already has a deal with Warner Music Group and is rumoured to unveil its own streaming service this year. They‘re still, however, having a tough time convincing Sony and Universal to join because the site also hosts copyrighted material without permission. We’re going to have to watch and see if this plan will push through and if they can provide a better alternative to streaming options we have out at the moment.

Source: SoundCloud | Via: Engadget

Last.fm gets design overhaul

If you’re the type who loved keeping track of your favorite music and new tunes on Last.fm, this update might be of interest to you. The streaming music service is getting a new look in hopes to get more people to pay attention to the site. The design update was first made available to paying subscribers and now it’s in open beta for the public. You’ll only be able to see it if you log into your account. There’s no word yet from the company when the new design can be seen by everyone.

The new look features a home page that shows all your tracks, artists, albums, and events. You can also play new tracks right away through the new playbar. The desktop utility has the playbar that lets you listen to music from different sources. Last.fm is also introducing a Library Explorer to help feed your throwback nostalgia for older songs you’ve loved.

Source: The Next Web

Festify lets your friends help curate your Spotify playlist

Holding a party with your closest buds? You can have them help you out pick the tunes with Festify. The Windows and Mac app lets you build a Spotify playlist on the app. And then you can invite friends to vote on tracks using their mobile devices. Those that get the most votes will be played next. You will, however, need a Spotify Premium account to make use of this app.

Source: Lifehacker | Download: Festify (Free)