Music streaming services have changed the music industry as a whole. Services like Pandora, iHeartRadio, Spotfiy, and (of course) iTunes have affected the music distribution model, encouraging healthy competition around the world in this emerging Android smartphone application market.
For example, Deezer is a music streaming service in France that has been growing in popularity, pretty much completely in the dark to American users. However, the French music streaming service has now fully launched in the United States to expand its market far beyond the few in America who had access to it through Bose or Sonos or Cricket Wireless customers.
But, ok, seriously, do we really need another streaming service? Honestly, how does Deezer expect to compete with these others who have been building solid followings over the past decade or so?
Well, the $10 subscription service—on par with the industry norm—might be able to slide right into the very small space between Spotify and Apple Music who are, currently, in a little tussle over iOS billing and who are already being crowded by new competitors like Tidal and Amazon Prime Music. Even with the high global count of premium users (those who are willing to pay for an ad-free version of these services, many of which are available in a free, ad-supported version), this is a tough market. Stil
According to Deezer spokesperson Ilana Rubin, the company has strong support worldwide and, with that, they are confident about the opportunity to grow in the extremely competitive American market. She comments, “In line with the growth of the business, we’ve identified the US as a market in which we can increase our growing user base, strengthen out brand partnerships and deliver the most personalized streaming experience directly to music fans.”
But what it really comes down to, of course, is content. Spotify continues to lead the market in streaming services in the US—with 30 million songs—but Deezer is quickly approaching; now with 10 millions songs in its catalog. And Spotify has a “Discover Weekly” sector that curates what you listen to and suggests new artists and songs you might like. Well, Deezer has something called “Flow” which leverages data analysis, expert curation, and intelligent algorithms to give context to personal recommendations.
Rubin goes on to say, “It intuitively knows exactly what you want to hear, instantly connects you to the music you already love and helps you discover new tracks that are relevant to your tastes.”
