This month in digital music libraries - May 2024
May 30, 2024 in digital music by Dan Gravell
In this month’s round-up: music ownership, the Sonos controllers drop local music support (and quickly re-instate it) and two new desktop DAP devices.
Music ownership
Artists are beginning to recognise that some of their fans want to collect music and curate their library.
Maybe not quite a _revolution_ in music distribution, but there are plenty of mainstream artists now supporting library ownership. https://t.co/Z8KhQ3c0Zq thanks @donetodeath
— Astiga (@astigamusic) April 26, 2024
… what is being rejected is this ephemeral link to the art we love.
‘It’s basically inaccessible without a phone’: are kids losing their love for music? https://t.co/kXeHJGBgWN
— The Guardian (@guardian) May 22, 2024
Sonos launches new app. People ain’t happy
Over the past month Sonos released a major update of its controller app, through which you can control Sonos speakers by choosing music to play. Historically, this has allowed you to combine local, owned music with streaming services.
Well, surprise! Sonos docked local music support. The reaction was pretty furious, even to the extent that Twitter/X felt they needed to add context to Sonos’s post:
The redesigned Sonos app is now available on the App Store and Google Play. Update to explore what's new 📲
— Sonos (@Sonos) May 7, 2024
After that, it became clear that Sonos had better do something about it…
We’ve heard your feedback and are moving quickly to improve your app experience. Our latest update reintroduces local music library playback, enhanced VoiceOver and TalkBack support, and more. You can find more details about the recent update on Sonos Support.…
— Sonos (@Sonos) May 23, 2024
The problem here is that Sonos built up a customer base of people that wanted to play music locally. Sure - many would have moved onto streaming, but that’s possibly only in addition to the ways they prefer to listen to music already.
Desktop DAP
Two more streamers-with-touchscreens landing this month. First, Volumio’s:
These devices by @Volumio look ideal for #IntentionalListening https://t.co/GrL8K7dmG7 pic.twitter.com/5pvivVNLeu
— bliss (@bliss_music) May 12, 2024
Audiophile darling WiiM also released their device:
Sounds similar to the desktop DAP devices we've been seeing... https://t.co/7kkQ0hYNM2 Thanks @ActuallySimon pic.twitter.com/hkeGvBpm9N
— bliss (@bliss_music) April 30, 2024
More next month!
Photo by Bruno Bučar on Unsplash
