qobuz.com
It seems like every other month, a new music streaming service comes out. Or, more accurately, you hear about a music streaming app that you've never heard of before. They just keep compounding on top of one another, and the list keeps growing and growing with no signs of stopping or slowing. There's Spotify, Tidal, Google Play, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Pandora, iHeart Radio - the list goes on and on.
It seems as if music streaming is becoming more popular by the day. And for good reason? Music is one of those forms of media that is consistent, and it always has been a reliable revenue source. It's one of the most consistently popular forms of art and entertainment, no matter how various other industries are doing - like film, television, and talk radio - so there's always a high demand for music streaming.
People relate to music on a different level than they relate to other forms of art. For some, it seems like music speaks to their soul; it draws them in and makes them feel things that they can't really describe. Many people cite the connection they have with music as one of the reasons why it is consistently in demand.
We constantly use music to soundtrack our lives. We work to it, we exercise to it, we mourn to it, we party to it, we dance to it, we make love to it, and we cook to it - but there are a few moments in life that are not made better by music. This is why finding the perfect music streaming service is especially important for us. It motivates us and keeps us moving through our hardships.
So many streaming services out there to choose from, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. It can be tricky figuring out which one is right for you. But the key, I think, is to think about how you listen to music. Each streaming service caters to a different way of listening, so it's important to know what you prefer. Today we're going to see how Qobuz stacks up against the competition.
History
Qobuz (pronounced ?co-buzz?) is a streaming service that was founded in 2007 by Yves Riesel. The company has gradually expanded its markets to include the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Spain, Germany, and Italy. As of May 2019, Qobuz is on trial in the United States.
I would say that Qobuz is more closely aligned with Tidal than it is with Spotify. That is to say, they value sound quality over all else. If you are a serious audiophile, I think you will find much to be excited about with Qobuz. Plus, as a relatively young music streaming platform, there are many directions left for this scrappy streaming service to grow. Who knows where the road will lead to Qobuz?
Design
If I had to sum up Qobuz's site design in a word, I would probably have to say that it is Dynamic. It employs a simple, minimalist approach that does not feel any less modern than it should. Scrolling down the page, you find that the layout is beautifully simple (elegant even), but graphics and text bounce and jump out at you to catch your eye?in a tasteful way?just enough to be interactive without being cheesy or feeling sophomoric in any way.
Qobuz is evidently marketed towards professionals, as evidenced by the site's images which show individuals in mature surroundings, enjoying lush soundscapes.
The website just flows and flows down the page, creating a smooth web experience. This results in a website that matches the listening experience. Qobuz is all about escaping, allowing yourself to be immersed in the music. And the website reflects this well, I think.
Content
Qobuz is a great streaming app that beats out other popular options. In terms of the number of songs, they have 40 million tracks which is more than Spotify and YouTube Music. Additionally, you can either stream or purchase individual songs to enjoy offline if you want.
Qobuz provides an enjoyable listening experience with curated playlists, as well as premium access to new releases. There are also many playlists that focus on unsung heroes of world music, which makes for an interesting and unique listening experience.
Qobuz seems to want to set itself up as the vinyl equivalent of a digital streaming world. It's strategy for pulling this off lies in content - in addition to 40 million+ songs in studio streaming quality, users can also enjoy exclusive interviews with artists and digital booklets of albums, scratching the nostalgia itch for anyone who misses the delights of possessing physical albums.
Desktop and Mobile Experience
The web browser player seems to be just as well-designed as the app itself when it comes to quality, streaming, and design when it comes to listening to Qobuz. Regardless of what device you are listening on, you can be guaranteed a superb listening experience with expert sound quality, flawless streaming, and beautiful design.
I agree that Qobuz is a good listening experience. Its average rating on the App Store is 4.7 out of 5 stars, and it has 2,600 ratings. It's great to have the intimate Qobuz listening experience with you wherever you go, no matter how small the space might be.
Pricing and Plans
This is where things start to go wrong, I'm afraid. As I said before, Qobuz seems to be marketed toward sophisticated professionals, and the price seems tailored for that target audience. No matter which subscription tier you go for, it's going to cost more than services from our competitor. The prices do fluctuate quite frequently, but at the moment these are the costs:
Studio Premiere is a new monthly streaming service that offers hi-res streaming, offline listening, exclusive interviews and content, and the first month free.
Sublime Plus is a monthly subscription service that offers access to everything that Premiere offers, as well as discounts on purchases and exclusive deals. The first month's membership is not free, but after that it is only $24.99 per month.
Suggestions that I have for Qobuz
I think it would be a good idea for Qobuz to try to get the price points down. A $10/month option would be a great start. Alternatively, Qobuz could offer a freemium model with ads and limited features or skips, in order to get more people interested. Right now, though, I don't know many people who are willing to pay $15/month for a streaming service without any guarantees.
I think the pricing tiers of Qobuz need to be reconsidered. I mean, at $25 per month, you really are only getting discounted downloads. Plus, part of the point of using a music streaming app is not having to download files, right? The pricing tiers need to be more reasonable in my opinion.
Conclusion
I think Qobuz has a lot of potential. It has great branding, site and app design, superb sound quality, and an edge that no other competitor app matches. But it needs to lower the price or offer more features for the current price.
If you're looking for a listening experience that comes as close to vinyl as you're going to get in the digital age, Qobuz is it.
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