Spotify, a provider of free streaming music services, is finally set to hit Australian shores today, following a dabbling of its toes through its marketing presence.
The Swedish company is entering the Australian market after a number of other streaming services have already hit the scene, including ones by JB HiFi and Sony Music – and just ahead of a new effort from Telstra, which has announced plans to supply a streaming service operated by MOG, a small operator.
Telstra promises access to over 15 million songs for a flat monthly fee – amount yet to be named.
Spotify in Europe offers a basic free service subsidised by ads. An ad-free version is available for a monthly fee equivalent to about A$8.
Its Down Under subsidiary has reportedly already signed up a number of would-be Australian advertisers, including the Commonwealth Bank, Carlton United Breweries, McDonalds and Triple J.
The current Australian online music scene for the moment remains dominated by Apple with its iTunes service, in which individual tracks are sold to users.
Streaming services like MOG and Spotify provide access to millions of tracks, whether for free or for a monthly subscription – but a customer’s music collection disappears forever if they ever stop paying the monthly fee.
