Apple is shutting down iTunes: Where to get music now
Apple announced Monday it was shutting down iTunes 18 years after its launch, but there’s still a slew of places for music lovers to listen to their favorite songs.
The tech company said at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference that it will be launching three new apps — Music, TV and Podcasts — to replace iTunes, which had been used to download and play music, movies, TV shows and podcasts. iTunes first launched in 2001 under the late CEO Steve Jobs and its accompanying music store in April 2003, which was called a “revolutionary online music store.”
With more people using streaming services, music downloads significantly declined over the past few years. Apple said Monday people shouldn’t be worried about losing their downloaded music.
“Users will have access to their entire music library, whether they downloaded the songs, purchased them or ripped them from a CD. For those who like to own their music, the iTunes Music Store is just a click away,” the company said in a news release.
Apple leaders announced it will be shutting down iTunes and launching three new apps in its place. (AP)
With the end of iTunes, users still have several places to get music. Here are some affordable options:
Apple Music
Apple launched its own streaming service in 2015 to compete with other services. Users can sign on for a free 3-month trial before taking on the $9.99 per month subscription. There’s also a family plan that gives six people access for $14.99 per month.
Spotify
Spotify gives people the option to stream music for free if they don’t mind encountering ads. The free version also doesn’t let users listen to music offline. People can sign up for Spotify’s premium subscription for $10 per month or the family plan at $15 per month for up to six people.
There’s no free trial, but new users will be charged 99 cents per month for the first three months.
The one caveat: Not all music, such as all of Jay-Z’s songs, is available on Spotify.
Amazon Music Unlimited and Prime Music
Amazon Music Unlimited gives people access to 50 million songs without ads at $9.99 per month. There's a free 30-day trial period for those who want to test it out. Amazon Prime members can sign up for the service at $7.99 per month.
Google Play Music
Like other streaming services, the monthly fee runs $9.99 or $14.99 for a family account. There are 30 million songs available for streaming and users have the option to listen to curated radio stations.
TIDAL
Jay-Z’s streaming service has the standard $9.99 per month premium subscription or a High Fidelity one that doesn’t compress music files at $19.99 per month. Both subscriptions include family and student plan options. Those who sign up for this service have access to more than 60 million tracks and 250,000 videos, including first access to listen to all of Jay-Z’s albums.
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Pandora
Pandora without a subscription includes ads and allows listeners up to six song skips per hour on radio stations created based on genres, artists or albums. Those who pay $4.99 per month won’t have to deal with ads, skip any song and listen to four radio stations offline. Pandora Premium, for $9.99 per month, offers unlimited skips, offline listening and ability to search songs.