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Apple Music - page 11

Oprah producing sexual assault documentary for Apple TV+

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Oprah Winfrey says Apple TV+ can have a genuine impact on humanity.
It will still debut later this month, but not on Apple TV+.
Photo: Apple

New details are starting to emerge regarding one of Oprah’s first projects for Apple TV+ that will put a bright focus on the music industry Apple is hosting an awards show for this week.

The former TV talk show host partnered with filmmakers Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering to produce a documentary covering sexual assault in the music industry. Set to premiere next year, the documentary will follow allegations made against a notable executive in the music world.

First Apple Music Awards celebrates the best of 2019

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Apple and Genius team up to bring Verified episodes on Apple Music
Apple and Genius team up to bring Verified episodes on Apple Music
Photo: Apple

Cupertino will celebrate the first Apple Music Awards with a special performance by Billie Eilish this week at the Steve Jobs Theater inside Apple Park.

Eilish takes the top honor as Global Artist of the Year, while Breakthrough Artist of the Year goes to Lizzo. Song of the Year goes to Lil Nas X for genre-blurring viral sensation “Old Town Road.”

You’ll be able to watch Eilish’s performance live at 6:30 p.m. PST on December 4.

Judge dismisses class-action music data lawsuit against Apple

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iPod silhouette ad, part of the marketing campaign that boosted iTunes Music Store sales
Apple has another lawsuit slapped out of court.
Photo: Apple

A California judge this week dismissed a class-action lawsuit filed against Apple over claims it “sold and otherwise exposed” the listening data of Apple Music and iTunes users.

U.S. District Court Judge William Alsup found that the evidence presented by plaintiffs was inadequate. They are now blocked from bringing amended claims against Apple in the future.

Condé Nast CEO unsure Apple News+ will be a success

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Rogerlynch
Roger Lynch kickin it in Cannes.
Photo: Roger Lynch/Twitter

One of Apple’s biggest publishing partners for Apple News+ is still waiting to be impressed by the fledgling subscription service.

Speaking at Recode’s Code Media conference this week, Condé Nast CEO Roger Lynch said the “jury is out” on the service. His less-than-enthusiastic endorsement of Apple News+ comes a week after a report claimed Apple is struggling to significantly increase the number of paid subscribers for Apple News+.

Amazon one-ups Apple with free music on iOS

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Amazon-Music
Start enjoying it today.
Photo: Amazon

Start blasting those holiday tunes with free Amazon Music on iOS.

The streaming service can now be enjoyed without a paid subscription for the first time on iPhone and iPad, giving it a big advantage over Apple Music.

But just like other free music plans, it does come with ads … and some restrictions.

Replay feature is Apple Music’s answer to Spotify Wrapped

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Replay feature is Apple Music's answer to Spotify Wrapped
Take a trip down memory lane with Apple Music Replay.
Photo: Apple

A new Apple Music feature called Apple Music Replay lets subscribers take a trip down memory lane with a look back at their favorite music from 2019 so far.

The feature is similar in concept to Spotify’s Wrapped feature — but with an important difference.

Look back over your favorite songs of 2019 with Apple Music Replay

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Apple Music Replay
Apple makes collecting your favorite songs into a playlist a snap.
Screenshot: Apple

Apple Music Replay is a new feature that automatically collects into one playlist the songs you listened to the most this year.

It’s also available for previous years, for when you want a bit of nostalgia.

Everything you need to know before Apple’s last earnings call of 2019

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Earnings call
Get ready for another record breaking quarter.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple is ready to unveil its last earnings report of 2019 this week, and investors are anxiously waiting to hear some good news on iPhone sales.

All early indications point to sales of the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro performing even better than expected. But because the new devices were only on sale for the very tail end of the quarter, they might not have given Apple the growth Wall Street is desperate to see.

Apple CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri are set to divulge all the details for Apple’s fiscal Q4 2019 earnings on Wednesday, October 30, at 2 p.m. PDT. Per usual, Cult of Mac will be analyzing all the data right when it drops and there are a couple of areas and metrics that are key to keeping Apple’s stock price soaring.

Students will get Apple TV+ as part of their $4.99 Apple Music subscription

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Streaming services like Apple Music dominate the US music market
That's another reason for students to sign up to Apple Music.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s launched its first bundle deal for Apple TV+ — but you’ll have to be a student to take advantage of it.

On Dickinson star Hailee Steinfeld’s Instagram page, the singer/actress noted that Apple Music subscribers on Apple’s $4.99 Student plan will receive Apple TV+ in addition to Apple’s streaming music service.

Spotify is adding 2x as many monthly subscribers as Apple Music

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Spotify is adding 2x as many monthly subscribers as Apple Music
Spotify reported some great fiscal quarterly earnings.
Photo: Spotify

Spotify’s third fiscal quarter figures show that it is growing considerably faster than Apple Music.

“We continue to feel very good about our competitive position in the market,” the streaming giant noted in a statement. “Relative to Apple, the publicly available data shows that we are adding roughly twice as many subscribers per month as they are. Additionally, we believe that our monthly engagement is roughly 2x as high and our churn is at half the rate.”

Apple’s AR Glasses are almost here! Catch the discussion, on The CultCast

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CultCast 409
A reliable analyst says Apple's AR glasses are right around the corner.
Photo: Apple

This week on The CultCast: Apple’s AR glasses are about to be announced! At least according to one very reliable analyst…. we discuss. Plus: Mac OS Catalina is out, but you probably shouldn’t install it—we’ll tell you why. And Final Cut Pro just got massively faster thanks to a new update, and a long awaited iOS 13 feature finally goes live.

Our thanks to Linked In for supporting this episode. A business is only as strong as its people, and every hire matters… head to LinkedIn.com/cultcast and get a $50 credit toward your first job post.

Apple employs a team of people to transcribe lyrics for Apple Music

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Streaming services like Apple Music dominate the US music market
This is one anecdote from a new Wired article about Apple Music.
Photo: Apple

Apple employs a team of people “listening to music and transcribing the lyrics,” says Oliver Schusser, head of Apple Music.

“We don’t get [lyrics] from the usual sites,” Schusser says, explaining that Apple doesn’t trust crowdsourcing to give it the right answers for its new synced lyrics feature.

Apple Prime? Giant bundle of entertainment services under consideration

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Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+
Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade and Apple News+ could all be part of “Apple Prime.”
Photo: Cult of Mac

Apple is reportedly mulling offering all its entertainment services in one giant bundle as a sort of “Apple Prime.” If true, then a single subscription would include the company’s music, video, and gaming services

This news is apparently leaking from music-industry executive who aren’t thrilled with the idea.

Apple Music for Android gets dark mode and more in big update

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music streaming
The latest release also includes Chromecast support.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Apple Music for Android today sees a big update that adds a new dark mode, Chromecast support, and more.

The latest release brings the Android version of the app in line with its counterpart on iOS. Here’s what you have to look forward to.

Apple Music introduces new ‘Lyrics to Live By’ video series

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Apple just launched its Lyrics to Live By video series
Apple is shining a spotlight on lyrics.
Photo: Apple

Apple has launched a new “Lyrics to Live By” video series. The video series features artists explaining the meaning of some of their best known lines.

It accompanies iOS 13’s new real-time lyrics feature which turns Apple Music into a karaoke experience. It lets users view scrolling song lyrics for the music they listen to.

Senior UK Spotify exec jumps ship to Apple Music

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Spotify is adding 2x as many monthly subscribers as Apple Music
Austin Daboh will be Apple Music's new Head of Editorial in the United Kingdom.
Photo: Spotify

A Spotify executive described as “one of the most senior and best connected figures at Spotify’s UK HQ” has jumped ship to Apple.

Former BBC Radio 1 and Spotify employee Austin Daboh will act as the new Head of Editorial for the UK & Ireland at Apple Music’s London HQ. Daboh will shape Apple Music’s UK editorial and playlist ecosystem. In particular, he’ll be focusing on promoting new British artists.

Amazon Music HD just upped the ante with lossless audio tier

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Amazon Music
Amazon is throwing down the gauntlet to rivals.
Photo: Amazon

Amazon has launched a new lossless tier of its music service, called Amazon Music HD. The new HD tier costs $14.99 per month or $12.99 per month to Amazon Prime subscribers.

Amazon Music HD offers more than 50 million high-resolution tracks at CD quality and higher, courtesy of 16-bit files and sample rates of 44.1kHZ and above. It also promises “millions of tracks” in ultra high-def for the true music quality connoisseur.

Apple Music releases ‘Up Next Live’ EPs of summer Apple Store concerts

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Bad Bunny
Concerts were designed to promote up-and-coming artists like Bad Bunny.
Photo: Apple

Over the summer, Apple Music hosted a series of seven exclusive concerts at global Apple Stores. The concerts featured artists Bad Bunny, Omar Apollo, Khalid, King Princess, Daniel Caesar, Ashley McBryde, and Lewis Capaldi.

Anyone who missed them can now check out these rising stars in concert, courtesy of Apple’s “Up Next Live” EPs. Now streaming on Apple Music.

Spotify now matches Apple Music’s 3-month free trial

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Spotify app now playing screen
Spotify and Siri are finally a team.
Photo: Ian Fuchs/Cult of Mac

Spotify is now matching Apple Music’s generous three-month free trial for new subscribers.

The offer is available to eligible individual and student users who sign up for any Spotify Premium plan, starting today. It will be extended to support Duo and Family Plans in the coming months.

TV drama will show how Spotify ‘beat Apple’

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Spotify is adding 2x as many monthly subscribers as Apple Music
The battle for our ears. And listening dollars.
Photo: Spotify

Streaming giant Spotify’s history shows a company that rose from nothing to take on Apple — and won. Well, kind of. At least, that’s the story that may be told in a new screen adaptation of Spotify’s rise to prominence.

While it’s not yet in production, the UK division of Swedish film and TV company Yellow Bird (the company behind the Swedish Girl With the Dragon Tattoo) just acquired the adaptation rights to the recent book Spotify Untold.

Think of it as The Social Network, only about the world of streaming music.

Porsche’s debut all-electric car will be the first with built-in Apple Music

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Porsche Taycan Apple deal
Coming soon to a Porsche near you. Well, so long as long as you live near a dealership or some very rich people.
Photo: Porsche

Porsche and Apple have brokered a deal to allow the new electric Porsche Taycan can stream Apple Music directly in-car.

“It’s about innovation,” said Klaus Zellmer, President and CEO of Porsche Cars North America. “…It’s about brand values that we share. And that’s why we were really excited when the project started.”

Apple Music playlist transports you to the hottest Ibiza clubs

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Ibiza club
Drinks are a whole lot cheaper, though.
Photo: XXNU/Flickr CC

Apple Music boasts some 50 million songs in its catalog. That’s the equivalent of almost two miles if it was a heap of CD-based albums piled on on top of the other.

To help make sense of all of this, Apple hosts a wide variety of hand-selected playlists. Now, thanks to two of the hottest clubs in EDM capital Ibiza, they’ve gotten some more. It’s like a vacation in your pocket!