Apple Music

• 1. Launch And Early Expansion

  ›

  Apple Music arrived on the 30th of June 2015, in one hundred countries. The service debuted as an updated Music app on the iOS 8.4 update. A three-month free trial subscription was available to new users at launch. This trial period later changed to a single month of access before requiring payment. Apple Music gained popularity rapidly after its launch, reaching ten million subscribers within six months. That growth rate meant the service reached a customer base that took Spotify six years to build. Before this moment, Steve Jobs had been known to oppose music subscription services entirely. Apple acquired audio equipment maker Beats Electronics in 2014 and inherited Beats Music from that deal. Business Insider reported that Apple planned to merge the two services into one unified platform. The company hired New Zealand born British radio DJ Zane Lowe to serve as a music curator for the new service. Shortly before release, singer-songwriter Taylor Swift wrote an open letter criticizing Apple's decision not to reimburse artists during the free trial period. She announced she would hold back her album 1989 from the service because the policy felt unfair. UK independent record label Beggars Group also criticized the trial period for making rights owners bear customer acquisition costs. The day after Swift's letter, Apple Senior Vice President Eddy Cue announced on Twitter that Apple had changed its policy. He stated that Apple Music would pay artists for streaming even during customers' free trial periods. Swift then decided to put 1989 on Apple Music, calling it the first time it felt right to stream her album.

  13142930

• 2. Evolution Of Features

  ›

  Originally strictly a music service, Apple Music began expanding into video in 2016. Then-executive Jimmy Iovine stated that the intention for the service is to become a cultural platform. Apple reportedly wants the service to be a one-stop shop for pop culture. In February 2016, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Dr. Dre would be starring in and executive producing a dark semi-autobiographical drama called Vital Signs. This production was described as Apple's first scripted television series. Recode subsequently reported that the announcement was an effort to extend Apple Music in promotional ways rather than actively exploring original television content. In April 2017, it was announced that Apple Music would be the exclusive home to Sean Combs's documentary Can't Stop, Won't Stop: A Bad Boy Story. That documentary premiered on the 25th of June 2017. On the same day, Bloomberg Businessweek reported that artist Will.i.am would make a reality show for Apple Music called Planet of the Apps. The series has cast one hundred developers and premiered on the 6th of June 2017. In June 2017, Apple hired two television executives from Sony, Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg. They have jointly held the title of President at Sony and helped develop shows including Breaking Bad and Shark Tank. Apple bought Carpool Karaoke from The Late Late Show with James Corden in July 2016. The adaptation of the series originally premiered on the 8th of August 2017 after being delayed without explanation.

  6791011