Last month, Techcrunch published a two-part series called “your guide to music on the web.” The articles featured a comprehensive list of pretty much all the major players in online music, and some analysis on how they compare and contrast.
http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/08/22/your-guide-to-music-on-the-web-part-1/
http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/09/26/your-guide-to-music-on-the-web-part-ii/
I noticed a few interesting observations:
1) Most of the sites stream directly from YouTube. If Youtube decides to get rid of music videos, most of these services would immediately need to shut down.
2) None of these services are fundamentally profitable. They struggle with legal issues and revenue models. Even the ones funded by venture capitalists have been forced to adjust in light of the economic crisis.
3) The entry of Spotify into the U.S. market will be very disruptive. Spotify is arguably the strongest player in the music streaming space, with a slick application, buy-in from the major labels, and substantial venture capital money. Their integration with the iphone will help the app spread like wildfire. This application (along with a couple of others), has the potential to become the market leader, thus making the rest of these apps irrelevant.
Thoughts?