Skype founders reveal cloud-based Rdio music streaming

by Stevie Smith - Jun 4 2010, 05:21

With the likes of Rhapsody, Spotify and Last.fm already considered prominent players in the music-streaming market, you may think there’s no space – or need – for another rival service to muscle its way into contention.

Unsurprisingly, Skype founders Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis would tend to disagree and their new Rdio platform is all elbows.

If the above music portals have thus far failed to attract your attention then perhaps Rdio’s affordable cloud-based service and archive of 5 million songs will successfully prick up your ears.

With an unlimited access subscription of $9.99 USD and a business model built on content accessed through remote servers as opposed to active downloads, Rdio will also offer social elements enabling users to create and share reviews, browse one another’s collections and align themselves with favoured artists and friends.

“Many digital music services have tried to address specific challenges, but no one has managed to elegantly integrate discovery and a high-quality music streaming experience under one roof,” commented Friis in an official statement.

“Rdio gives you unlimited access to all the music, anytime, for the equivalent price of one album download per month,” he added.

The Rdio platform is, of course, primarily PC compatible. However, company CEO Drew Larner has indicated that software applications for mobile devices such as Apple’s iPhone and RIM’s BlackBerry are already in place, while an app for Android-powered handsets is also on the way.

In terms of publisher support, Rdio has the backing of major industry heavyweights such as EMI Music, Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Warner Music Group. The service also has the support of several independent publishers.

Rdio is presently in its beta stage and usage is strictly invitation only and limited to the United States.

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