Apple Music is coming, and there is no avoiding it. The company may have only announced the details of their service recently, but they’ve been planning for this for some time now. It is clear now that when the tech firm paid over $3 billion for Beats By Dre last year, they had more in mind than just headphones.
But now that Apple is set to focus all their energy on their own streaming service, what is going to happen to the Beats brand? Apple has plans to both discard certain parts of the business, while others will stay strong, and likely grow under Apple’s guidance.
Beats Headphones
The company started with headphones, and it looks like they’ll stick to headphones, at least for now. Beats are bestsellers, and they have a huge following, thanks to genius development, marketing, and innumerable celebrity placements over the years. Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine spent a lot of capital and money to get the product line where it is today, and there’s no sense in wasting all that. Beats By Dre still sell incredibly well, and keeping them on store shelves is truly in everybody’s best interest.
Beats Music
It seems that just as the streaming service that stemmed from the headphone line’s success was getting going, it has met its end. The Beats Music’s website now displays several images touting the arrival of Apple Music and encouraging people to sign up. Many streaming services are very similar to one another, so in this case, it makes sense that Apple wouldn’t want to split their users between two brands. Once they launch later this month, Apple is promoting their new platform 100%, and there’s no looking back.
Those that are already paying for Beats Music will be prompted to switch to Apple’s option. While it may be a bit of a pain, and it might take some getting used to, users will be able to transfer their playlists and the songs, albums, and artists that they’ve favorited from one service to another.
Beats1
When designing Apple Music, the company was smart not to entirely erase the brand’s presence. Beats has spent a lot of money and several years establishing themselves as a well-known figure in the space, and it would be a shame to limit that only to headphones just as the brand was continuing its growth.
Beats1 is the radio portion of Apple Music, and it sounds like it’s going to be a major part of the service. Apple has recruited some of the biggest names in traditional radio for their Beats-branded option, and in doing so have kept the spirit of Beats alive.
