Amazon is fast emerging as a music streaming service and is up against giants like Apple and Spotify. Thanks to its pricing structure, Amazon is making meaningful headway in the streaming space and as a competitor to already established names.
Amazon was among the companies to sell music on the internet with CDs in the 90s and even offered downloadable MP3s. However, it was late to the streaming game. While Apple Music was launched in mid-2015 and Spotify in 2011, Amazon Music debuted in the second half of 2016.
Steve Boom, head of Amazon Music told the Financial Times that its streaming service has more than 55 million users now. The figure is inclusive of six different price tiers and an ad-supported free tier. However, Amazon insists that all its users are paying subscribers.
Last summer, Apple said its Apple Music service had 60 million paying subscribers and in September, Spotify had 248 million listeners and 113 million paying subscribers.
For $10 a month, Amazon offers the same catalog of 50 million tracks that Apple and Spotify offer. However, if you hold Amazon’s Prime membership you can get it $8 per month. If you listen exclusively on an Amazon Echo speaker, the price further reduces to just $4 a month
Which is one service that you use consistently and what is your opinion in terms of the best music streaming provider?