Yahoo Music Unlimited (perhaps semi-OT)

[jasonHoldEm]

(Not affiliated, blah, blah, blah...just looking to pass along what I consider a good deal)

http://music.yahoo.com/unlimited/

Holy crap this is cool. I signed up last night and have been going on musical overload ever since. Basically the deal is for $60 a year you get unlimited access to their entire catalog (you can stream the music, download the tracks to your computer for offline playback, transfer to a compatible portable device, etc).

The program is advertised as still being in beta, but from what I've seen that's more of a marketing gimmick than anything else. The software is a little strange at first (sort of like what would happen if iTunes mated with a web browser), but once you get the hang of it things fall together nicely.

The musical catalog is pretty diverse. I've found pretty much everything I've been looking for so far (and I have some semi-obscure tastes), although occasionally there are limited offerings for a particular artist. One of the cool things I've started using is the "Create a playlist of similar artists" button (listed on each artist's page). It's a great way for me to generate a quick playlist to listen to while I'm playing poker and it's helping me to discover some new artists already.

Anyways, check it out.

J

[scott8]

Now is there any way to get this music to my ipod??

[kross]

RealNetworks Rhapsody offers all that and more.

Plus with Rhapsody, they have what they call Rhapsody 25, for non-subscribers, you get 25 songs free every month.

With Rhapsody To Go, you can transfer the songs to portable devices (not iPod), without having to purchase the songs. It's part of your monthly subscription.

Also, the RealNetworks music store is the only non-iTunes music store that supports the iPod.

-- Kevin

[wbrumfiel]

There is, pay an extra $.80 for each song... wait that sounds similar to another service Ive seen.

[AcmeSalesRep]

[ QUOTE ]
With Rhapsody To Go, you can transfer the songs to portable devices (not iPod), without having to purchase the songs. It's part of your monthly subscription.

[/ QUOTE ]

What does this cost? I cannot find the cost on their web site.... Or is this just part of Rhapsody Unlimited?

Thanks.

Acme

[dogsballs]

[ QUOTE ]
RealNetworks Rhapsody offers all that and more.

Plus with Rhapsody, they have what they call Rhapsody 25, for non-subscribers, you get 25 songs free every month.

With Rhapsody To Go, you can transfer the songs to portable devices (not iPod), without having to purchase the songs. It's part of your monthly subscription.

Also, the RealNetworks music store is the only non-iTunes music store that supports the iPod.

-- Kevin

[/ QUOTE ]


Do you need to use their software to playback, or can you just use iTunes for all this (question is for both raphsody and yahoo)?

[Lurker4]

for the commercial free radio stations that you get w/this package - is this the same as Yahoo's Launchcast Plus (unlimited song skips, higher quality music than normal Launchcast, etc), which is normally $2.99/month?

[Position]

Cool.

It looks very much based on Musicmatch On Demand which I've energetically enjoyed for many months & which has been flourishing for maybe a year before that.

I bet Musicmatch will remain the best product in this space at least for the next year because they've done a great job of building a diverse (even obscure) catalog.

I'll keep an eye on Y's new one though.

[Position]

Now I've done the research & am up to speed:

Y bought Musicmatch six months ago. Y said when they debuted their separate Unlimited last month:

[ QUOTE ]
. Yahoo! Music intends to eventually combine Musicmatch's offerings with Yahoo! Music Unlimited to create the industry's best end-to-end suite of music services."

[/ QUOTE ]

Also, Musicmatch On Demand is really just for U.S. broadband listeners who are happy to stream everything through computers.

Also, there was a short & none-too-informativeWired announcement.

[jasonHoldEm]

[ QUOTE ]

Do you need to use their software to playback, or can you just use iTunes for all this (question is for both raphsody and yahoo)?

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes for yahoo.