Apple to Relaunch Beats Music Streaming Service With Free Trial

Spotify's position at the top of the streaming world is being challenged more and more every day, and now, tech giant Apple is looking to claim supremacy with its upcoming relaunch of Beats Music, which will now exist as a paid-only subscription service, foregoing the ad-supported model used by competitors like Spotify and Pandora. Although the timeframe hasn't yet been nailed down, Apple plans to offer new users somewhere between one and three free months of Beats Music after its launch, hoping the taste of milk will make listeners want to buy the cow.

How long the free trial period is going to last will be determined by talks Apple is currently going through with labels and artists, but what is certain is that the market Beats Music is about to enter is crowded and filled with uncertainty. Taylor Swift famously does not allow her music to stream on these services, and the latest newcomer, Tidal, has seen its fair share of criticism. Apple is looking to turn the game on its head as it attempts to establish paid streaming as the only available option, trying to convince labels not to renew their free streaming licenses with services like Spotify.

In related news, Apple also announced that iTunes Radio would also be revamped and is expected to feature stations programmed by people instead of algorithms, one of those humans being Zane Lowe, who recently left his post at the BBC in favor of Apple.