RIM launches music sharing service
Posted August 25, 2011 3:04 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Move over Ping. There’s a new music-sharing service in town.
Research in Motion Ltd. has launched a similar program for the BlackBerry device.
BBM Music, a cloud-based service will be available to those who use BlackBerry’s instant messenger. BBM Music launched in a closed trial on Thursday, and will be available in 18 countries by the end of the year.
The cost will be $4.99 a month. RIM customers can pick up to 50 songs from an online library, 25 of which can be changed every month. The songs can then be shared with other BBM Music users and there’s no limit to the number of friends they can share with.
Sidneyeve Matrix, a professor of media and mass communications at Queen’s University said well-designed software that make the BlackBerry cooler to use are exactly what the company needs.
“They never have cool stuff. They don’t need 20 new phones. They need excellent services and software — desperately,” Matrix said.
And it’s smart for the company to be leveraging its biggest strength with young people, BBM, any way it can, she adds. RIM has more than 45 million BBM users.
“My students are…18 to 22 and BBM is an extension of their self, it’s always on, it’s like the backbone of college culture. Everybody’s got BBM,” she said.
Some tech blogs came out swinging after RIM made its announcement Thursday, making unfavourable comparisons with other music services like Rdio and Spotify, which charge $10 a month but have no song limits.
Mike Lazaridis, RIM president and co-CEO, said, the company has partnered with leading music companies “to provide a ‘full track’ music sharing and discovery experience.”
They include Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and EMI.
Omnifone is providing the service and will manage the server.
With files from The Canadian Press
