{"id":430015,"date":"2010-03-15T14:18:34","date_gmt":"2010-03-15T18:18:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gigaom.com\/?p=105842"},"modified":"2010-03-15T14:18:34","modified_gmt":"2010-03-15T18:18:34","slug":"sxsw-as-mog-goes-mobile-the-u-s-waits-and-waits-for-spotify","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/430015","title":{"rendered":"SXSW: As MOG Goes Mobile, the U.S. Waits (and Waits) for Spotify"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Music service MOG<\/a> lifted the lid on its new mobile applications this morning at SXSW<\/a>, promising premium subscribers the ability to stream any song, anytime, anywhere, on both iPhones and Android devices. With the new apps, scheduled for launch early in the second quarter of 2010, MOG becomes yet another company that will offer ubiquitous on-demand access to a large library of songs, following Thumbplay\u2019s launch<\/a> earlier this month and Rhapsody\u2019s last year<\/a> -\u2013 and representing a further erosion of opportunity for Spotify<\/a>, the European streaming music provider whose U.S. launch<\/a> has still failed to transpire.<\/p>\n

MOG\u2019s cloud-based mobile service will cost $10 a month, double that of its well-received desktop-only product<\/a>, which features custom radio and playlisting in addition to the on-demand component. Music service providers, including Rhapsody and Best Buy-owned Napster<\/a>, have long hoped that adding on-demand mobile access would boost consumer interest<\/a> in subscribing to music, sometimes derided as renting music. To date, the Rhapsody service -\u2013 which added offline storage<\/a><\/del> will soon feature offline storage to<\/del> on its existing mobile apps this weekend<\/del> -\u2013 has gotten little momentum<\/a> from smartphone adoption.<\/p>\n

Daniel Ek, chief executive of European streaming music provider Spotify<\/a>, is scheduled to deliver a keynote interview<\/a> tomorrow at SXSW, prompting speculation<\/a> that the company could finally launch in the U.S. Spotify is testing the freemium model for streaming music, offering free ad-supported streams to PCs and a premium ad-free service in both desktop and mobile versions. The free product has proven wildly popular<\/a> in Europe, but the company hasn\u2019t yet demonstrated that its conversion rate<\/a> — thought to be less than 4 percent<\/a> in a February estimate — is high enough to satisfy record labels.<\/p>\n