Year: 2020

Analysis and updates from the world of high‑resolution and digital audio.

Listening to albums is in decline
News

Listening to albums is in decline

30/01/2020
Listening to albums is in decline with over half of us admitting to listening to fewer albums in the last five years according to a recent survey by Deezer. The survey in January 2020 of 8,000 adults which included 2000 interviews from respondents in the US, Germany, France and Brazil found the following results: Over half (54%) of us listen to fewer albums than 5 -10 years ago Biggest reasons: being too busy and artists […]
Sonos back peddles on ‘legacy’ product updates
News

Sonos back peddles on ‘legacy’ product updates

27/01/2020
Sonos back peddles on ‘legacy’ product updates having received countless complaints from its customer base on plans to stop updating its older products from May this year. In a blog posting, the CEO of Sonos, Patrick Spence, apologised to customers and offered what amounts to a split upgrading process where legacy kit will continue to receive updates to allow them to coexist and function with other products but will not receive newer features. No details […]
News

90 day free trial of Amazon Music HD

27/01/2020
You can get a 90 day free trial of Amazon Music HD giving access to 50 million songs in CD Quality (Amazon HD) and ‘millions’ of songs in HiRes (Amazon Ultra HD). After the 90-day period, your free trial subscription will auto-renew and you will pay the full monthly price of £14.99 (£12.99/month for Prime members) Amazon Music HD Individual Plan or £19.99 for the Amazon Music HD Family Plan with the option to cancel […]
The Smart Audio Report Winter 2019 report
News

Quarter of US adults own a smart speaker

26/01/2020
Quarter of US adults own a smart speaker according to a report from NPR and Edison Research which found that 60 million US adults (24% of the 18+ population) own at least one smart speaker device. The Winter 2019 Smart Audio Report confirmed continued growth in the smart speaker market with the average smart speaker household now having 2.6 devices, up from 2.3 devices per household at the same time last year. The research also […]
UK music streaming tops £1 Bn in 2019
News

UK music streaming tops £1 Bn in 2019

25/01/2020
UK music streaming tops £1 Bn in 2019 recording the fifth consecutive year of growth according to data compiled by the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA). The report on entertainment spending in the UK contains information on music, video and games sales for the year and can be downloaded here. Spending by UK music fans on streaming services exceeded £1 Bn for the first time in 2019 as overall expenditure on entertainment increased to another all-time-high. […]
Amazon Music hits 55 million subscribers
News

Amazon Music hits 55 million subscribers

24/01/2020
Amazon Music hits 55 million subscribers globally with subscriptions to Amazon Music Unlimited growing by more than 50% last year alone. Amazon Music grew nearly 50% year-on-year across the US, UK, Germany, and Japan and has more than doubled in recently added countries such as France, Italy, Spain, and Mexico. In the second half of 2019, Amazon Music also launched in Brazil and introduced Amazon Music HD, its high quality audio streaming option, as well […]
Sonos back peddles on ‘legacy’ product updates
News

Sonos to stop updates on ‘legacy’ products

23/01/2020
Sonos is to stop updates on ‘legacy’ products starting in May 2020 with some of its oldest products no longer receiving software updates or new features. Legacy products include their original Zone Players, Connect, and Connect:Amp (launched in 2006; includes versions sold until 2015), first-generation Play:5 (launched 2009), CR200 (launched 2009), and Bridge (launched 2007). Although a common occurrence for computers and smartphones, the withdrawal of support for audio equipment is a first and reflects […]