YouTube Music
YouTube Music is a music streaming service developed by YouTube, which is a subsidiary of Google. Here's a detailed look at its history, features, and context:
History
- Announcement and Launch: YouTube Music was announced in May 2018, with a full rollout in the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, and South Korea. It was designed to replace Google Play Music over time.
- Global Expansion: The service gradually expanded to more countries, aiming for a global presence to compete with other music streaming giants like Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music.
- Merger with Google Play Music: In 2020, Google announced that Google Play Music would be discontinued, with YouTube Music being the primary music streaming service for Google.
Features
- Library: YouTube Music offers an extensive library of official songs, albums, singles, live performances, and covers, as well as user-generated content.
- Personalization: The service uses advanced AI to curate personalized playlists, recommend new music, and provide a 'mix' feature that creates a playlist tailored to the user's tastes.
- Video Integration: Unlike other music streaming services, YouTube Music also includes music videos, enhancing the user experience with visual content.
- Offline Playback: Users can download songs, albums, or playlists for offline listening, similar to other premium services.
- Background Play: With a premium subscription, users can play music in the background while using other apps or when the screen is off.
- Smart Search: It includes a smart search feature that allows users to search for songs by lyrics or even just humming or singing.
- Remixes, Covers, and Live Performances: YouTube Music's unique selling point is its access to a vast array of remixes, covers, and live performances, which are not always available on other platforms.
Business Model
- Ad-Supported Tier: There is a free, ad-supported version that allows limited skips, no background play, and no offline downloads.
- YouTube Music Premium: The premium subscription removes ads, allows background play, offline downloads, and includes access to YouTube Premium for ad-free videos.
- Family Plan: A family plan is available, allowing up to six family members to enjoy the premium features at a discounted rate.
Context and Reception
- Market Position: YouTube Music aims to leverage YouTube's vast user base and the existing music content on the platform to challenge other music streaming services. Its integration with YouTube gives it a unique edge in terms of content availability.
- User Interface: The app has been praised for its user-friendly interface, though some users have noted that it still lacks some features compared to its competitors.
- Artist Compensation: There has been debate over artist compensation, with YouTube Music using the same payment model as YouTube, which has been criticized for favoring views over streams.
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