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Ecommerce giant Amazon India has launched Amazon Prime Music in India. The retailer had brought its Prime service to India 18 months ago and later followed it up with its videos service.
The platform has now entered the online music vertical competing with existing players like Saavn, Wynk, Apple Music. Gaana and Hungama among others. In last three months alone, the company has inked deals with five top labels including T-Series, Times Music, Tips Music and Sony Music. It has also inked a host of regional music content deals with various partners.
“There is a tectonic shift happening in the Indian streaming markets. Data has become affordable and we expect more consumers to consume it . Music, therefore, is an integral part of our expansion,” Sahas Malhotra, Director, Amazon Music India told BusinessLine .
He said the company’s partnership with top music IP owners and curated content is one of its key USPs. “With ad-free streaming at no additional cost to Prime members, Amazon Prime Music offers a welcome break from text and voice ads that come between you and your favourite music,” he said adding the company plans to add regional soundtracks.
Prime membership in India is for Rs 999 annually. Players like Gana and Saavn have a membership of Rs 1,050 and Rs 1,020 per year while Google Play Music and Apple music stands Rs 1,200 and Rs 1,440 respectively.
The company had last year launched its Echo speakers and Alexa assistant. Alexa has been built into Prime Music app and it can use voice search for music. Amazon Prime Music is available in 30 countries.
A report ‘Digital Media: Rise of On-demand Content’ by consulting firm Deloitte, India’s digital music industry is expected to reach Rs 3,100 crore in revenue while the number of online music listeners is expected to reach 273 million by 2020.
According to International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) Global Music Report 2016, there has been an increase of 10.2 per cent in digital music revenues, which have soared to $6.7 billion, with a 45.2 per cent increase in streaming revenue more than downloads and physical formats.
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