Rdio has announced a Cloud-based service that offers unlimited, on-demand access to five million songs across multiple devices.
”Designed as a highly social experience, Rdio (www.rdio.com) improves the discovery and sharing of music,” explained Rdio co-founder Janus Friis.
“[It] offers many different ways to easily discover music, [such as] personalized recommendations for new music based on specific tastes and listening behavior, [as well as] on-demand artist-based radio stations for those who prefer to stumble upon related music.”
According to Friis, Rdio marks the “next evolution” in the online music experience.
“Rdio gives you access to all the music, anytime, for the equivalent price of one album download per month. [The platform also] takes the manual effort out of discovering new music and building a digital collection by connecting you to other people and their music…Links and information about favorite songs can be shared with friends on Facebook, Twitter and email.
“[Plus], Rdio’s apps know what album or playlist you were listening to on your desktop [iTunes/WMP) when you connect via your mobile and they show what your friends are listening to. You can also sync music to your phone to enjoy when you’re offline.”
Rdio currently offers applications for BlackBerry and iPhone, with an Android version slated for release in the near future.
Although still in beta, the company has already signed deals with a number notable labels, including EMI Music, Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group.
Rdio is expected to officially launch later this year, with web and mobile access (including syncing music) slated to carry a price tag of $10 per month. However, web-only access to the service will be set at $5.
