apple music for artists Archives

A new video from Spotify criticizes the company’s control over the mobile market with the blistering message, “Apple comes between you and the music you love to listen to.”

The streaming wars are never-ending. A decade after the launch of Spotify, consumers have more choices than ever when it comes to streaming providers. There are dozens of companies competing for billions in potential revenue, and the two biggest names are currently locked in a brawl that seems unlikely to be resolved anytime soon.

This week, Spotify was integrated into Siri, the AI assistant included with all Apple devices. Why it took so long for such an obvious thing to happen confused many, but Spotify laid out the truth in a blistering indictment of Apple and its numerous platforms in a video featuring their signature animations. Check it out:

The video can be summarized in one blistering comment:

“We don’t love it when Apple comes between you and the things you love to listen to.”

Spotify’s video explains how Apple sets itself up to be a “referee and player” in the world of audio streaming. The company sites the 30% subscription fee the app store requires Spotify to pay as proof of this claim, as well as the fact Apple does not allow subscription through any other means. Spotify also accuses Apple of using its position of power to continually move the goalposts of the streaming business in a way that benefits its platform, Apple Music. Additionally, they accuse the company of hiding their deals, including the three months of free premium service given to all new subscribers.

At the time of this post on October 8, Apple has not yet responded to Spotify’s claims.

Apple Music has become the latest tech giant to surprise users worldwide by listening to the people responsible for the content their platform is built to promote. Following in the steps of Spotify, who recently unveiled a playlist submission feature, Apple Music artists can now upload and change the bio and profile photos associated with the artist page for Apple Music and iTunes.

The service, which is still in beta, is a much-needed addition. Artists who sign up for Apple Music for Artists are usually approved in a matter of days. New photos can be submitted under the Manage tab on the dashboard, and they must be at least 2400 x 2400.

The addition of this tool, which has been offered by Spotify for over year, should help Apple Music in their efforts to become the world’s leading streaming platform.

Here’s how it works:

1 Open Apple Music for artists and select the Manage option.

2. In the section labeled Artist Image, you can upload a new image. It MUST to be 2400 x 2400 and a .jpg or .png file.

3. Once the image is uploaded, you can adjust the crop and how it will appear on the service. When finished, select Submit.

4. Your image won’t appear changed because there is a manual approval process for new changes in place, but changes typically only take a few days to process. Once you see Submitted for Review, you know the process is underway.