Spotify has demonstrated a version of its streaming music service which will work on mobile devices. It’s not exactly the killer blow for the mp3 player, but it could change the way users see their music collection.

The existing Web-based service differs from the likes of iTunes in that users do not keep the music. Instead they simply listen to it as and when they want, via a net connection. Unlike some streaming rivals, users choose which tracks play, and there’s an impressively wide selection of music available (albeit with some major bands not represented). The service is free of charge, supported by adverts, which play between tracks every half hour or so, though there’s also a premium option which removes the ads for a monthly fee.

Spotify has now demonstrated a version of its player designed for mobile devices running the Google Android system, bringing two new features. The first, and most obvious, is that users can now access the entire Spotify archive on the move, which could spell the end of having to decide what music to carry on your mobile device.

The major drawback here is that the mobile edition only works through a Wi-Fi connection, rather than the phone network itself, greatly narrowing the areas it will work in. (It’s also worth remembering that a streaming service through either type of connection may incur data transfer charges.)

The second new feature is offline listening. The precise details of how this works aren’t entirely clear yet, but it appears that users can synch their device to an Internet-connected computer and then ‘cache’ a playlist to their device. They’ll then be able to listen to those tracks without having to remain online.

That raises some serious questions about Spotify’s licensing deals as it’s likely record labels will no longer consider this method to come under the ’streaming’ category. Spotify may be able to placate these arguments by setting the system up so that a music ‘cached’ in this way can only be listened to once before the device must be resynched.

The demonstration also brings up the question of if and when Spotify will launch in the United States. It also sparks the possibility of the firm developing an app for the iPhone which – if Apple allowed it into the App store – would mean the phrase ‘iTunes killer’ might not be mere marketing grandeur.

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Entry was posted on Thursday, May 28th, 2009 at 12:44 pm under Uncategorized.

Read more entries by John Lister.
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