TOKYO: Sony and Spotify revealed a new partnership to improve and help the music to be found by gamers around the world. Called PlayStation Music, the service will let users import their Spotify settings into their PlayStations (versions 3 and 4), adding music to their gaming experience. In addition to traditional video game consoles, those with Xperia smartphones can also get in on the fun.
As part of the new venture, Sony’s Music Unlimited service will disappear, which shouldn’t upset too many. Sony’s branded service will close on March 29th, when PlayStation Music will officially take over. Those who are currently paying for Music Unlimited will only have to do so through the end of February, as the company will foot the bill through March for those staying on.
“We are incredibly honored to partner with Sony and PlayStation to give gamers around the world an amazing experience wherever they listen to music” Spotify CEO and founder Daniel Ek said in a statement about the two companies joining together.
PlayStation Music will be available in over 40 countries, thanks mostly to the partnership with Spotify. Before their joining together, Sony’s Music Unlimited was only an option in 19 countries. Spotify will be bringing their massive catalog along, giving PlayStation Music users access to 30 million songs and over 1.5 billion different playlists—much more than gamers previously had.
The partnership is a good idea for both companies, as it allows PlayStation users to find new value in their consoles, and it opens up plenty of new potential customers to the idea of Spotify. While there are already millions of people around the world who use Spotify—the service claims to have 15 million paying subscribers globally—there is still plenty of room for growth, and streaming sites are going to have to start getting creative if they want to reach those that haven’t accepted streaming just yet.
This is one of the first meaningful partnerships between a streaming site and the video game world, but there have already been several in the cellphone industry. Earlier this month, French streaming company Deezer became the latest in a series of announcements that saw mobile carriers offering streaming music as part of certain plans. It’s a fantastic way to reach new people who might not know about your company or who may not have considered streaming as an option on their mobile devices.
