Tidal is a platform owned by artists. This is how Jay Z described the new artist-owned streaming service during the application’s launch a couple of weeks ago. The goal of the service is to re-establish the worth of music. Alicia Keys, one of the stakeholders of the service, explained that Tidal was built to provide a better experience and quality service to both artists and fans. The mission of the service exceeds beyond commercial and technological gain.
Spearheaded by rapper Jay Z, Tidal was launched in New York City last March. The 16 celebrity stakeholders of Tidal are as follows:
• Madonna
• Alicia Keys
• Usher
• Chris Martin
• Rihanna
• Kanye West
• Beyoncé
• Calvin Harris
• Arcade Fire
• Deadmau5
• Nicki Minaj
• Daft Punk
• Jason Aldean
• Jack White
• J. Cole
• Jay Z
The majority of the stakeholders were at hand for the launch of the streaming service. To show their commitment to Tidal’s mission, they all signed a declaration onstage.
Tidal 101
Tidal is a streaming service that focuses on audio and video music files. It centers on the quality of the sound of the files as well as the exclusive release of songs and videos from various artists. Contrary to Spotify, possibly the most popular music streaming app, Tidal doesn’t provide a free version after the 30-day free trial period expires. Instead, the celebrity-owned streaming service offers two kinds of payment schemes. One is for $9.99 every month and the other is for $19.99 per month. The former includes standard-quality music, much like the one that can be heard on other streaming services. The latter includes high-definition music, much like the one that can be heard on an actual CD or the lossless HD sound. Both payment plans include curated content about artists, songs, and music in general as well as HD videos.
As of the moment, Tidal is only available on iOS and Android gadgets in limited countries, such as the US, the UK, Hong Kong, Ireland, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Singapore, Germany, France, and a few others (go to Tidal’s website for the complete list of countries). The streaming service is also downloadable on the desktop. It’s important to note that, for the meantime, the lossless streaming is just available for Chrome.
Competitors’ Verdict
Tidal will go head-to-head with a number of music streaming services, particularly Spotify and Beast Music. Spotify is undoubtedly the most popular and most-used streaming service today with over 15 million of paid users and more than 45 million free subscribers. Beat Music, on the other hand, is a revamped streaming service from Apple that will be launched later this year.
When asked about Tidal, Spotify opted not to comment. However, music insiders, technology experts, and stores that sell electronics and apps say that the more well-established streaming services aren’t worried about Tidal. At least, not just yet.
There is definitely a buzz about Tidal, especially when its prominent stakeholders are included in the mix. Predictions say that it will boil down to the exclusive songs and videos that Tidal can offer that will set it apart from its competition.
