SFX-owned electronic music marketplace Beatport has officially launched its new streaming app today, March 26, after months of speculation. The app allows users to peruse the service's vast music library and stream any song on it for free in its entirety. The move is an attempt to try and fill the void in the streaming marketplace for electronic music where Spotify, Pandora, Deezer and others have been slow to upgrade their own libraries.
The app was launched today for Android and iOS and incorporates a ticketing service with Bandsintown and live video streaming to allow fans to watch live DJ sets. Beatport hosts their own live mix series, so this will allow fans to stream directly onto their mobile device.
On first glance, the app is sleek and responsive. Users can like and browse through the library relatively easily. Reactions have been mixed for the new Beatport Pro layout, so that may deter some early adopters, but it should be generally well-received. It does not appear that one can buy music directly onto your phone, but that could be rolled out at a later time. The service does not cost anything and comes ad-free, which is a huge bonus.
Beatport has one considerable advantage with the new app. Many artists release their music as a "Beatport Exclusive" for around two weeks, which allows them to charge more, up from $1.99 to $2.50, and ensures a higher chance of being featured on the home page or on genre pages. Though labels and artists have started to shift away from this with iTunes and Spotify becoming more of a factor for dance music fans, the advent of full streaming by Beatport, notably on mobile, will make the exclusives more attractive to potential partners.
"The evolution of Beatport involves far more than just streaming music," said Greg Consiglio, president and COO of SFX, in the official press statement via Mixmag. "We've built the definitive home of electronic music in all forms and formats, including festivals and events, streaming, music downloads and news and information available on Web and mobile."
