Free music streaming on your computer! (spotify.com)

Member Name: nunoidia

Product:	spotify.com
Date:	08/09/09 (26 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Mac and PC, easy to use, free and paid models

Disadvantages: Gaps in its library

Finally the UK has a viable music streaming service, in the form of Spotify.

I lived in the US for a short time, and whilst I was there, I came across the wonder that is Rhapsody; a service which lets you stream music on various subscription levels. I tried to access it once I returned to the UK, only to find it wasn't licensed for use in the UK. Swift to follow was Pandora, an excellent service which introduced me to new music (which I then legally bought I might add), which eventually failed in its attempt to negotiate a fair fee with UK licensing authorities, and as a result was forced to closed its doors to UK listeners.

Enter Spotify, a streaming service with two subscription models, free (but with advertising), and premium, for which you pay a monthly fee of £9.99, or £0.99 for a day pass, which allows you to listen for a day ad-free. The service is legal, since Spotify have been able to come to agreements with record labels to ensure that artists are fairly compensated. Admittedly there are gaps in its library where an agreement with a particular label has not been reached (for example, you won't find The Beatles or Led Zeppelin currently. I also was not able to find the largely unknown but fabulous Schuyler Fisk), and there is the very annoying experience of clicking on a song only to have the message "This track is currently not available in United Kingdom". However, the service is relatively new, and as it grows in popularity (which it no doubt will, provided it can maintain its quality levels and ease of use), with any luck, those labels and independent artists not yet onboard will realise its potential.

This review is taken from an article I have written for my own forthcoming blog.

Summary: A viable platform for music in the UK