Amazon is ushering the age of high-definition audio streaming with the launch of Amazon Music HD that initially can be accessed by subscribers from the U.S., the UK, Germany, and Japan. Touted as killer feature of the service is the use of lossless audio, which is something that Amazon's rivals mainstream, including Apple Music and Spotify, are unable to provide.
Amazon said its high-tier streaming service would make use of lossless FLAC music files, which, according to audiophiles, is similar to the quality experienced when listening to a music CD. The HD quality is similar to that of Tidal, which delivers streaming sound in a different file format.
However, Amazon stands to undercut Tidal with a starting price of $12.99 per month that will be charged for customers already with an Amazon Prime account. For new subscribers, the monthly fee is set at $14.99, still cheaper when compared to Tidal's asking price of $19.99.
According to The Verge, Amazon wants the new service to the music streaming platform for the masses, adding the company is shying away from the business model that governs Tidal. The latter is seen as a niche market, which means the service is largely unreachable by millions of music fans from around the world.
Amazon's plan is to make Music HD the standard, so it is unsurprising that the main goal is to take on industry leaders such as Spotify, Apple Music, and Google Play Music. Basing on the same report, Amazon is off to a good start as its existing music streaming now counts over 32 million subscribers. The company is hoping the whole lot will migrate to the Music HD in no time.
As of the last count, Spotify boasts of 100 million active listeners, and these numbers serve as inspiration for Amazon to equal or better yet surpass.
It remains quite a mystery though how exactly Amazon will entice streaming music fans to abandon their current subscriptions in favor of Amazon Music HD. One puzzle that the company needs to deal with is the pricing as Spotify, for instance, can be had for as low as $3 per month in select markets.
It looks like the service will bank on its main appeal, which is high-definition audio that the company can drumbeat as the wave of the future with the increasing availability of faster and cheaper internet connection.
Already, Amazon Music HD has a rock icon for a fan. Neil Young immediately embraced the service, which he characterized as something that will change Earth forever.
"This will be the biggest thing to happen in music since the introduction of digital audio 40 years ago," the music legend was quoted by CNET as saying in a statement.
