Apple Music was introduced on June 8, 2015, during the WWDC (World Wide Developer Conference) in the Moscone Center, San Francisco. Now “Apple Music for Business” is set to launch.
Apple, as has now become known, wants to offer its music streaming service to companies. On its own website the company is presenting the new business model. Apple is working with the music company PlayNetwork. As part of this collaboration, the Cupertino-based company is providing playlists tailored to retail companies. PlayNetwork already offers various music services for shops, hotels and restaurants. In the latest partnership, the music company will take over the licensing while Apple will create the individual playlists. The first customers include shops such as Levi's and London's Harrods. Apple's idea has been around since at least the summer of 2018 - according to earlier rumors. However, the test phase of "Apple Music for Business" is said to have started around six months ago.
“We were intrigued by their suggestion that we could find our brand in our own curated playlist” – said Guy Cheston, Director of Partnerships at Harrods.
New source of income for Apple
"Apple Music for Business" will thus be a competitor to existing services such as Soundtrack Your Brand, whose main investor is Apple's rival Spotify. Providing such playlists usually costs between $25 and $35 per month per store - according to some reports. However, it is not known how much Apple will charge for such playlists. The business model not only promotes the individual companies in their music offerings but also helps the actual musicians to make more profit. In addition, Cupertino benefits from “Apple Music for Business” is a new source of revenue and advertising method. (Photo by Prathan / Bigstockphoto)