File Photo: People are silhouetted as they pose with mobile devices in front of a screen projected with a Youtube logo, in this picture illustration taken in Zenica October 29, 2014. (REUTERS/Dado Ruvic)
Not content with just dominating online video, YouTube wants a piece of the music subscription business and is apparently preparing to launch a YouTube-branded service in March 2018.
According to Bloomberg, the new service is referred to internally as Remix and it is a reaction to the ongoing success of existing services such as Spotify and Apple's music offering. Of course, running a music subscription service requires a lot of music be made available. YouTube is thought to already have Warner Music Group signed up and talks are underway with Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group.
This won't be the first time Alphabet/Google has dipped its toe into music. We've already seen Google Play Music and YouTube Music Key (which then became part of YouTube Red) attempt to grab some market share. In each case, they failed to have the same impact as rivals.
YouTube Remix looks to be a new approach. We should expect a service that offers on-demand music streaming, but with access to a range of YouTube-specific features including video. Artists will also be enticed to add more to the service through promotion. Could it be we'll see new video content from artists linked to their streamed songs? That would certainly count as a USP for YouTube.
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