Amazon makes 100MM song catalog free to all prime users

It is now clear that Amazon will be one of the long-term leaders in digital music. @danny is full integration on the way? (or is it here and I missed it?) Thank you and cheers!

TechCrunch (US publication), November 1, 2022
Amazon announced today a new benefit for its Prime members which could lure some subscribers away from other music services, like Apple Music or Spotify. The company said it will now offer Prime subscribers a full music catalog with 100 million songs, instead of the previously more limited selection of just 2 million songs, and will make most of the top podcasts on its service available without ads. In addition, the Amazon Music app is getting a revamp, which includes a new “Podcast Previews” feature that will allow customers to listen to short clips as a way to discover new podcasts they may like.

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“including access to a full catalog of music available in shuffle mode”

Doesn’t sound like on demand access is included here.

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Agreed. Let’s see where it goes.

Shuffle for 100MM songs would be pretty unusual, e.g., And now, after rocking out to some AC/DC, let’s hear some Bach!, and now some New Order, and now some Mozart (!)?

My guess is it’s a first step to full access on-demand. We’ll have to see…

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Has anyone actually tried it?
To see if it is just shuffle or if that’s a poor choice of verbiage on Amazon part.

Not as bad as it sounds…

"Access to a full catalog of music in shuffle mode

Prime members will now be able to stream more music than ever before. We’ve expanded the Amazon Music catalog for Prime members to include more than 100 million songs—up from 2 million—entirely ad-free. Prime members can explore music and podcasts based on their likes; shuffle play any artist, album, or playlist in the catalog; and stream a collection of All-Access playlists tailored to personalized listening preferences on demand and available to download for offline listening."

EDIT: Well, maybe it is as bad as it sounds. I’ll pass. I don’t even do Amazon Prime.

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I’m a Amazon Prime customer. I’ll take a look and report back.

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Garbage. Sorry, but that’s it really.

You have a skip limit of about 5 tracks. I started playing The Beatles and shuffle skipped through a few tracks of their album Abbey Road and then went off to play something else, The Kinks I think and reached an unknown skip limit for unknown amount of time.

In Lossy format only.

And track scrubbing is not enabled either.

Constant prompts to tempt you to upgrade to the subscription.

Nah, I’ll leave it ta!

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Beatles (10 char).

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TANSTAAFL, I guess.

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I am an Amazon prime subscriber, but I’ll pass it, in shuffle mode, wow!

Sounds like the Pandora model to me. Just a few more songs.

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A good analysis of what Amazon is doing, and why.

https://completemusicupdate.com/article/amazon-shuffles-its-prime-music-offer-full-100-million-track-catalogue-now-available/

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I still use Pandora to this day occasionally, I always liked the “my station” aspect.
But I would never pay for it…lol
And you need to be a Prime member for this Amazon deal so in effect you are paying for it.

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How is this different than Pandora? I haven’t used Pandora in years, I didn’t actually realize Pandora was still around. The Amazon Music page seems to be far more focused on podcasts than music though, maybe that changes if you actually subscribe.

I’ve been online a day or two. I still had to look that up.
tips hat
Thank you.

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Well spotted. Was testing you all.

(Now corrected)

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Off topic but fully on topic: amazon doesn’t pay taxes in Europe… but uses the roads, the educated workforce, gets subsidies and indirectly destroys commerce in inner cities etc etc. this company is brutal. I cannot recommend using their „services“.

Both off topic and, respectfully, off logic.

If Amazon does these things and has not been convicted of a crime, then your ire should not be directed at Amazon, but at the elected European officials who made the laws in Europe who permit it!

: )

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Right, let’s just blame it all on the voters and the politicians when a multinational exploits loopholes to the detriment of society. And to be clear: what Amazon does in Europe is no worse than what they do in the US.

Here is a US analogy: there is an opioid crisis in the US, for years now. There is one main company that has caused much of it. Said company and its owners has not faced any real consequences for their role in the opioid crisis nor will they. Does that make the crisis the voters’ and the elected officials’ fault?

There are plenty of companies who are able to make a profit and stay ethical, without being forced to do so by laws.

Is this US Prime only?