It’s been just over a week now since Apple failed to announce the cloud-based music service many of us hoped would replace Lala. While all remains quiet on this front, CNET’s Greg Sandoval is reporting this morning that Google, after years of rumors, is finally getting into the music business this fall.
CNET cites “multiple music industry sources” in its story, saying that Google “first stoked excitement among executives at some of the top four major labels during the Consumer Electronics Show in January”.
TechCrunch’s recent discovery of a “Google Music” logo is also offered up as solid evidence that the search engine giant is looking to soon pair its search and customization capabilities with a web-based a-la carte music service.
Google recently moved further in the direction of competing with the dominant duo in the music world, Apple’s iTunes and iPhone (or iPod), with its acquisition of Simplify Media. As the company demonstrated at its Google I/O conference, Google will use Simplify Media’s technology to allow Android users to stream music directly from their desktops to their phones. Already, some are questioning whether or not this, in addition to a Google music service, could overthrow Apple’s complete dominance in this sphere.
The one real question we have for both Google and Apple is “what’s taking you so long?” While both companies lumber along and talk about cloud-based music, companies like MOG and a slew of others already offer a plethora of online music for pennies on the dollar. MOG, for example, offers more than seven million songs on demand for $10 a month.
Of course, none of these services have the immediate market reach and influence that a service by either Google or Apple would have, so we’ll just have to wait and see which one gets there first. A first-place finish by Google could, however, lure some leery iPhone users in the direction of Android.