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Introducing Vdio

blog.rdio.com

81–90 of 107 posts

Re: Introducing Vdio

#81
post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They don't care pre-emptively, but it only takes getting burned once after sinking hundreds or thousands into a dead platform that they start to get skeptical.

I'm sure any customers of Walmart Music are reluctant to fall for this again. http://arstechnica.com/uncategorized/2008/09/wal-mart-latest...

Sad to say, but I think it's a simple matter of enough people getting burned for the scales to tip on non-DRM content.

Re: Introducing Vdio

#82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

RE: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5479848 I'd love to think that software innovations would trickle down into larger markets, across borders, and into lower brackets of economic prosperity, but things like this just really frustrate me. Canada is often treated like shit in terms of access to marketplaces and entertainment services online, and it needs to stop soon. USA, we are your closest partner, and we want…

Is there any chance that Canada is also responsible in this? I ask because of the very strict CRTC regulations which dictate how much foreign content can be served to Canadians.

msbarnett got it -- the CRTC has nothing to do with this, and instead it is the regional rights holders. Most US television shows, for instance, are licensed to Canadian broadcasters. Most movie play rights sold to Astral Media (the Movie Channel). Etc. Even where it's a simple subsidiary of a US media company, it still leads to Canada getting screwed.

We're in the situation of being a big enough, lucrative enough market that they want to maximize revenues here, yet paradoxically we're small enough that they're usually in no rush to do so.

Re: Introducing Vdio

#83
post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you have a basis for this statement?

The profit margins are too slim. Their revenue barely covers the operating costs and onerous licensing fees.

When their licensing fees are barely paying the people who produce the content then I don't think onerous is the right way to describe it. Spotify produce far too much consumer surplus and in return underpay artists and themselves. I'm guessing the backers think this is OK, but inorder for low cost low margin to work you need massive scale which may work for spotify, but is not really sustainable and ends up being another example of silicon valley shitting on content producers.

Re: Introducing Vdio

#84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've tried both and have stuck with Rdio. The social aspect is superior. I love being able to see playlists and recommendations from random people beyond my Facebook friends. Spotify's desktop app is definitely faster, though I find Rdio to be better designed.

Completely agree. The UX of Rdio is far superior, IMHO.

totally agree as well. its above and beyond better.

Re: Introducing Vdio

#85
post #74
post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

None of the streaming music companies are sustainable in the long term.

Do you have a basis for this statement?

Yeah, it's one industry I'm very familiar with. It's what dublinben said, there is no profit. It's even a bit worse than that - there are significant losses involved. The sites are expensive to run and the labels can charge whatever they want for licensing fees.

Re: Introducing Vdio

#86
post #3

I hope this means Rdio is going to be a more sustainable long-term business, and not that Rdio is pivoting away from music; Rdio seems to be the best of a shaky lot when it comes to subscription music services, and I'd hate for it to get worse.

Its pretty hard to beat Spotify unless you have some specific taste in music they dont cover well. But overall I have a hard time seing a better service than theirs. It just works, is fast and has a large db of content.

When you don't pay for it, Spotify interrupts your music with shitty commercials for country music, while Rdio just cuts you off after awhile. Hence, Rdio was the one I ended up using long enough to decide to subscribe.

Re: Introducing Vdio

#87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've tried both and have stuck with Rdio. The social aspect is superior. I love being able to see playlists and recommendations from random people beyond my Facebook friends. Spotify's desktop app is definitely faster, though I find Rdio to be better designed.

But there is a BIG difference here if we're talking about the free services of both. Spotify is always free, and rdio is only free for 6 months. Yes it's probably a good thing to pay for a service that you like (I do), but some people don't, and that's going to be where they prefer Spotify. http://support.spotify.com/us/learn-more/faq/#!/article/How-... http://help.rdio.com/customer/portal/articles/187730-rdio-fo...

I'd rather be cut off honestly than hectored into subscribing by having my music continuously interrupted with advertising.

Re: Introducing Vdio

#88
post #51

"only available [...] in the US and UK" Can anybody think of any geo-tarded service that successfully rolled out in other countries later? Because as some not in the "chosen countries" I always feel that those services either a) never arrive, b) get beaten to the punch by local competitors or c) have to spend a shitload of money to conquer that market, sometimes by buying the aforementioned competitors. Also, unless…

"Can anybody think of any geo-tarded service that successfully rolled out in other countries later?" As someone living in the US, I can only imagine the frustration people must feel not having access to content in their home countries. It would drive me nuts as well. But as someone working at a company who also tries very, very hard to make services available to people around the world (the goal is 100% coverage) I a…

I think geo-tarded is OK; something retarded is delayed. Geo-limited is probably more realistic in many cases though.

Re: Introducing Vdio

#89

Rant ahead... Am I the only one dissatisfied with the way media delivery has played out the past couple of years? We started with a rapidly developing delivery system (the internet) and content makers who couldn't see the value in capitalizing on this sales channel by making movies, TV shows, and songs available to consumers at reasonable prices (read: less than physical media costs), which led to piracy, global diss…

Check out Vhx.tv too. A really great new service. I think this is the first I have seen a place go in the right direction. Or at least in the direction I would like to see streaming/downloading video services to go.

Re: Introducing Vdio

#90
> Vdio is only available to Rdio Unlimited subscribers in the US and UK

I'm tired of this crap. This is the internet, why does my country f* matter? I pay in dollars like everyone else.

You need to weave better partnerships with your content providers, or you lose me to The Pirate Bay.

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