Joystiq

Xbox Music plays tomorrow on 360, Windows 8 booked for launch

Sinan Kubba — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 12:00:00 EST

Xbox Music, Microsoft's Spotify-like replacement for Zune, debuts on Xbox 360 tomorrow. Engadget reports the service is available via an Xbox Music Pass (formerly Zune Pass) subscription, $9.99 per month/$99 per year for Xbox Live Gold users.

Microsoft also confirmed Xbox Music is coming to Windows 8 PCs and tablets at launch on October 26, on which the service offers unlimited free streaming for the first six months. Xbox Music Pass subscribers don't suffer ads, and can store tracks for offline listening. After six months, streaming becomes time-limited without Xbox Music Pass. Another difference between the Windows 8 and Xbox Live versions is that the latter cannot be run in the background.

The above video showcases some of Xbox Music's features, including unlimited skipping and Smart DJ, the latter creating radio stations based on a particular album, artist, or song you select. It launches tomorrow on Xbox 360 with 30 million global songs (18 million for the US), and users can try it out for zip, nada, and niente via a 30 day free trial. Xbox Music is also coming to Windows 8 phones (with the same model as on Xbox 360) "shortly after" Windows 8 launches and other unannounced platforms "at a later date."

Xbox Music plays tomorrow on 360, Windows 8 booked for launch originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 15 Oct 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Xbox Music launches this month with free ad-supported streaming

Jordan Mallory — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 19:30:00 EST

Microsoft's Xbox Music service will reportedly launch alongside Windows 8 on October 26, according to anonymous sources speaking with Polygon.

The service will supposedly provide both subscription-based and free ad-supported streaming music plans for Xbox 360, Windows 8 and Windows Phone users. Microsoft SkyDrive integration is also said to factor heavily into the service's functionality, allowing for synced playlists and music libraries across all supported devices.

These claims match an earlier report from last June, in which Bloomberg claimed that Xbox Music would launch with Spotify-like streaming options and cloud storage capabilities. Microsoft did state shortly thereafter that reports of it "launching a new music service on Xbox this fall are inaccurate," only to discontinue certain Zune services the following month.

Personally, all we care about is whether we'll be able to use this new service to watch Girls' Generation videos, regardless of when it actually comes out.

Report: Xbox Music launches this month with free ad-supported streaming originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 06 Oct 2012 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Select Zune services being pulled, Xbox 360 largely unaffected

David Hinkle — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 15:20:00 EST

Microsoft is preparing its transition from Zune to Xbox Music, announcing today that select Zune functionality would go the way of the Dodo starting tomorrow, August 31. Xbox 360 users will find their experience pretty much the same for now - you can still stream unlimited music videos with your Zune Pass subscription.

With the Windows 8 launch right around the corner on October 26, Microsoft is doing away with Zune HD apps and many aspects of using Zune on the PC, Engadget reports. Social Zune features such as sending messages, sharing playlists and viewing past play history have been axed, and users may no longer purchase or stream music videos on the PC, nor can Zune users re-download, re-activate or re-license music videos on new machines or if they upgrade to Windows 8.

Select Zune services being pulled, Xbox 360 largely unaffected originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 30 Aug 2012 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Xbox Music to allow subscription streaming, a la carte purchasing

Richard Mitchell — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 11:30:00 EST

The recently announced Xbox Music service will feature both a subscription-based model and the ability to purchase individual tracks, according to a Bloomberg report. The service will reportedly allow users to stream music for a monthly or yearly subscription, in addition to traditional purchases.

Furthermore, an "online locker" of sorts may allow customers to store their music collections online for a fee, with the really intriguing part being that the locker could store music purchased from other services as well. As previously announced, said music will be playable across a range of devices, notably those that run Windows 8.

In other words, it sounds like Xbox Music will offer similar functionality to what is currently offered by the Zune service, with the added benefit of having a name that isn't associated with grim failure.

Report: Xbox Music to allow subscription streaming, a la carte purchasing originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 03 Jul 2012 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Xbox Music coming with 30 million tracks

Alexander Sliwinski — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 13:06:00 EST

Microsoft has announced a new music service, branded Xbox Music. Calling it the music service Microsoft "always wanted" to develop, the new service will feature 30 million music tracks that'll be accessible on the Xbox 360, Windows 8 PCs, tablets and phones.

Previously, Microsoft's musical efforts were focused on the Zune Marketplace, which may or not be a thing. No one at Joystiq seems to remember.

Xbox Music coming with 30 million tracks originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 04 Jun 2012 13:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft states 'Xbox Music' launching in fall is 'inaccurate'

Alexander Sliwinski — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 10:25:00 EST

Update: Statement from Microsoft: "Reports that Microsoft is launching a new music service on Xbox this fall are inaccurate. A recent demonstration of upcoming Xbox features showcased what we will deliver later this fall on Xbox, including voice search with Bing on Xbox to locate and access entertainment content on the console. This includes Zune music which has a catalog of more than 11 million tracks."

Business Insider has updated its story to clarify: "What's coming this fall is voice commands through Kinect, and the way to get that music is to say 'Xbox. Music.' So that's the command, not a new name service."

Original: Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer mentioned a service called "Xbox Music" at the company's Worldwide Partner Conference in Los Angeles yesterday, according to Business Insider. Ballmer stated the service would be enabled this fall, contain over 11 million songs and be compatible with Kinect.

With rumors of some Zune Marketplace subscription service coming to the console and the Zune brand having been on shaky ground for a bit, it's possible that Xbox Music is a new name or reimagining of Zune Pass for Xbox 360 -- or it could be like Sony's Qriocity. We've contacted Microsoft for any further details.

Microsoft states 'Xbox Music' launching in fall is 'inaccurate' originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 12 Jul 2011 10:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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