Apple’s Next Trick: Upending Streaming Music

This time, Apple CEO Tim Cook had “one more thing.” In a presentation tactic favored by his predecessor Steve Jobs, Cook waited until 1 hr. 43 min. into his annual World Wide Developers Conference keynote on June 8 to unveil a new product many have been anticipating for years. Apple Music, a streaming-music service to rival popular products from the likes of Spotify and Rdio, will be available June 30.

With the $9.99 monthly all-you-can-listen subscription, Apple is hoping it can persuade millions of customers worldwide to change their music habits, much the way it did over a decade ago when it introduced the iPod and the iTunes Music Store. Though it has been around for several years, streaming is still in its infancy. According to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, streaming subscription revenue grew 39% last year, to $1.6 billion, while overall download sales fell 8%, to $3.6 billion.

The world’s most valuable technology company appears to be throwing a bit of everything it can into Apple Music. Not only will it allow users to stream millions of iTunes tracks, but it will include Beats 1, a 24-hour streaming radio station. Connect, another feature, is a social network intended to let musicians communicate with fans.

There will be challenges, however. In June, Spotify announced it raised an additional $526 million to help it fend off Apple and others like Google and Amazon. And the attorneys general of New York and Connecticut are reportedly investigating Apple’s negotiations with music companies in search of possible antitrust violations.

–MATT VELLA