Best Buy launches Music Cloud, targeting Google and Apple
Summary: Not to be outdone by Amazon, Apple, and Google, Best Buy is launching its own cloud music service. But why?
With Google, Amazon, and Apple all launching their own cloud music services in recent weeks, you would think the sphere would be a bit too saturated for another cloud music competitor. But you'd be wrong.
Now Best Buy wants in on the cloud music fun. Via Best Buy Music Cloud, Best Buy will allow users to upload their tunes and stream them remotely to multiple computers and smart phones. The service can be used on devices running iOS, BlackBerry, and Android.
Best Buy offers two versions of the service, one for free and one for $3.99 a month. However, there is no clear indication on what the difference is between the two versions.
The biggest limitation so far seems to be that the service relies on iTunes in order to function. Likewise, the premium version of the service isn't offered on iOS devices, owing, no doubt, to Apple's tight subscription policies.
In all, the move is a real head scratcher from Best Buy, which can't possibly expect its service to flourish when Google and Apple are fighting over the same turf.
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Talkback
Clouds in my coffee
A big lump of you-know-what rolls downhill to the IT guys, who get the CEO off their backs by throwing together something that requires iTunes but doesn't collect money from iOS users.
RE: Best Buy launches Music Cloud, targeting Google and Apple
It is you that are missing the boat
All of these are cloud services, each just uses the cloud in different ways as it relates to music. Think of Zune and Spotify as music rental through the coud and the others as services who give remote access to your purchased music through the cloud. I'll add one more, Pandora is ad supported music through the cloud.