Tech retail giant JB Hi-Fi will be closing its doors on its music streaming service NOW, allegedly due to the dominance of ad support ‘freemium’ services such as Spotify and Pandora.
In what appears to be a company email – which you can read in full on website Gizmodo – the ‘freemium’ model makes it hard for subscription based music services to continue to operate.
We saw what happened with streaming service Rdio last year – the company told B&T the local Aussie market was one of the most competitive music streaming landscapes around, and around six months later announced it had closed and filed for bankruptcy with reports streaming site Pandora would buy its assets.
In a post on the JB Hi-Fi NOW website, the statement doesn’t provide a reason as to why the service is closing, but says it will finish streaming on 17 March, 2016. Subscriptions are not able to be bought anymore and those with a current subscription will have it turned into store credit or available for a refund.
B&T has contacted JB Hi-Fi for further comment, and was referred to an article on publication Stack.
CEO Richard Murray told Stack: ”The music department is entrenched in the DNA of JB Hi-Fi and we are committed to continuing to provide the largest range of CDs and vinyl across our 180 stores nationally and on our online store.”
“Engaging with our loyal music customers outside the store is key to the ongoing success of music at JB, and the team are very excited about future plans to amplify that engagement. We thank you for your support of the service and look forward to your continued support of music at JB Hi-Fi.”
The announcement also pushed the retail giant’s commitment to selling CDs and vinyl for those who love nostalgia.
