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Gamp and Grimes's avatar

Great article. One caveat:

“Theory #2: Apple despises music and musicians.”

This flatters both a) musicians (and by extension writers, other artists, etc.) and b) everyone who cares about the arts, any art.

Apple, Amazon and their fellow tech lords don’t despise us. They’re utterly indifferent. They don’t care. What’s more, it rarely, if ever, occurs to them that that that might even be an option.

They don’t despise people who can do things they can’t, appreciate things they don’t or who have simply made life choices they didn’t. That would entail some level of respect and resentment.

Nor is there likely much guilt about unfairly profiting off other’s work that leads to anger (it’s not a case of ‘we hate those we exploit.’) They evidently think entirely in terms of product, processes (of distribution, consumption, monetizing, etc), consumers and long term strategies.

Not only are the actual individuals who create & cultivate art beneath contempt (being despised), they’re usually beneath even perfunctory notice.

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oddnaan's avatar

I think the comments here and in the article are unnecessarily vitriolic towards Apple, who albeit is a trillion dollar corporation, but has plainly proven over decades that their business model is based on delivering genuine value to customers, a handful of caveats and misdirections withstanding.

Theory #1 is the obvious motive for Apple and the least riskiest approach. Apple does not take overt risks and are known to be slow to move. I do not see them making any deliberate pursuits towards AI-generated music until that market has been well proven out. Today, AI music still amounts to novelty meme content that shows up on your feed occasionally.

They have been cornering the classical music market since they bought Primephonic, the niche classical music streaming service, in August 2021. Clearly they are just trying to buy into the classical music industry by buying a reputable classical music label. It doesn't need to be fancy or even profitable - just well run, with hard-earned experience among its staff and ownership. Whats valuable to Apple here is the access to knowledge and experience of working within the classical music industry, and being exposed to every step between artist to listener.

What is likely here is that Apple is making a bet towards niche streaming services for music (and probably other forms of content) as the way to profitability. One giant music app with all artists and all tracks is starting to seem like a nebulous and herculean approach that never quite satisfies the user. However - a niche streaming app dedicated to classical music? That would invite die-hard classical fans and casual ethusiasts alike and is much more likely to retain users over time. And to build a successful niche app that satisfies the die-hard classical music listener, you need deep knowledge and expertise. That's why they bought BIS.

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