On March 30, Jay Z launched the premium music streaming service Tidal and received backing from some of the biggest names in the music industry during the launch. These included Beyoncé, Chris Martin, Madonna, Kanye West, Daft Punk, Jack White, Arcade Fire, Usher and Rihanna. The app immediately landed at the fourth spot on the iOS music app chart following the launch.
Tidal is touted as the first artist-owned and -supported platform for streamed music and video content. It aims to compete against Spotify and Apple's own music service headed by Dr Dre.
Two weeks after hitting the U.S. iPhone top 20 download chart, Tidal reportedly dropped out of the top 700. In contrast, Spotify immediately moved back into the iPad top 40 download chart on March 31. By April 20, Spotify and Pandora occupied the fourth and third spot respectively in the same top 20 download chart. As if these shifts were not enough, Beats Music also began landing a spot in the U.S. iPhone top 20 revenue chart.
The reason for Tidal's drop from the chart is not known, although it is speculated that some users may have found its price a bit too high. Those who have downloaded the app and used it under the trial period may have thought about calling off their subscription, and eventually uninstalled the app.
Tidal charges users $9.95 a month for standard sound quality. The higher monthly charge of $19.99 offers "lossless high fidelity sound quality." Spotify offers free streaming that includes adverts. A premium service charges users $10 a month. Pandora charges $4.99 a month and offers ad-free Internet radio service.
Tidal also offers the first month free as a trial feature. Its library currently has over 25 million songs and 75,000 music videos. Streaming is available both in online and offline modes. Streaming is also measured at 1,411 kilobytes per second, which is higher than the 320 that Spotify Premium users get.
Part of Tidal's drawing appeal comes from offering exclusive media content from artists. These include "Glory" by Jay Z, "American Oxygen" by Rihanna, "Die With You" by Beyoncé and "Ghosttown" by Madonna.
Tidal's latest offer is a program they call "Soundiiz," where users can import their current playlists to the app's service. This could be reaching out to those who have already subscribed to other streaming services such as Spotify.
