I found that the Spotify and Apple Music homepages (and to an extent the subsequent pages that follow) had a very similar, straight forward layout made up of geometric tiles showing a preview of the music/podcast through an image. I think that Spotify’s layout is a lot more attractive for the viewer as the dark screen creates the illusion there is not as much negative space in contrast to Apple’s white background. I thought the darker background also makes the images stand out and therefore encourage users to click on suggested tiles. However, I think that neither have a layout which encourages the user to explore and browse different music as a customer would historically have done in shops.
I also began to research interactive designer, Robert Hodgin’s “Planets” music streaming app created in 2011. Hodgin’s is heavily inspired by the structure of outer space and has reflected this in an exciting and unorthodox music library in which artists, their albums and the songs in each album has been organised as though they were each a solar system. User’s create these placements selecting their favourite musicians who act as the sun who like the star, have used their life source to create albums (planets) who revolve around the centre and in turn, have even smaller moon rotations showing popular/most listened to songs within these albums. Hodgin’s idea is really fascinating as it is unlike any other regular streaming apps music library, typically made up of boring, vertical lists which the user must scroll through tediously to find their desired music or podcast. I think “Planets” is ideal for touch screen software like iPhones and iPads as the user can utilise pinching and swiping motions to zoom in and manoeuvre around the different interlocking and orbiting systems as though they astronauts exploring space. I think it would be a really immersive form of music browsing as the user is able to view all of one artists work in a solar system, while also being able to view similar artists and genres that they may like in the same atmosphere. However, I do think that this app would be difficult to convert to a computer software in the way Spotify and Apple Music operate as mouse and touch pad navigation would diminish the free and fluid steering that users would find so useful.
As I was researching the recent history of music listening, I was interested to learn about Format Wars. Format Wars is a phrase used to describe the “competition between similar but mutually incompatible technical standards that compete for the same market“. This competition has ultimately leads to the demise (and in the case of e.g. the vinyl- the comeback) of many iconic music streaming formats throughout the twentieth and twenty-first century music listening goods - for example, the first vinyl or LP (Long Play) record was released in 1948 by Columbia records; an update on the less capable phonograph record. This form of record reigned supreme for over thirty years- its flat, circular appearance becoming a symbol of music listening (the Spotify software icon has arguably taken great influence from its shape and spiralling grooves and also features more obviously as an icon on the desktop to indicate a user is listening to an album).
In 1979 Sony released the “Sony Walkman”, signifying the end of an era for the vinyl. The Walkman cassette and player revolutionised music streaming, enabling the user to listen to their favourite music from anywhere- walking to school, on the train etc; unlike the relatively immobile and inconvenient vinyl turntable. This transition also kickstarted the rapidly downsizing of music listening devices, indicating the markets desire to listen to music whenever and where ever. Eventually the portable cassette was updated, taking a similar appearance to the vinyl in the form of a smaller, CD disc. In 1997, the next monumental advance in music listening came with the first MP3 player (entitled MPMan F10) released by South Korean company SaeHan Information Systems. This release marked the beginning of the Digital Age of music listening- changing the purchase of music from physical copies to downloading digital files to the device. As with most digital devices, the rapid development of newer, more efficient devices by a hoard of companies like Apple and Sony have created an incredibly competitive market in which the consumer is forced to update almost every year. Users have transitioned from e.g. the Apple iPod classic to the iPod Nano to the iPod touch screen until even this has been phased out, with most users preferring to combine their digital music library with their mobile phone via apps like Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube. However, there has also been a sudden resurgence of vinyl listening since 2015. In 2018, Sony announced they had received an influx of vinyl record purchases reaching nearly 9.7 million sales and in 2015 US vinyl sales reached $416 million- their highest since 1988 according to the Recording Industry Association of America. This is a result of many factors including social media trends and an increase of vintage/ thrift shopping that suggests a harkening back or sentimentality surrounding this form of music listening which the consumer wishes to experience again. As I continue to develop my concept, I would like to explore how this evolution of music streaming devices has had an effect on the art and visual experience related to music listening.
It was interesting to note that between the two largest subscriber based music streaming platforms: Spotify and Apple Music, as on 2020 Spotify was the most popular. To date, the streaming service has over 155 million subscribers (the service also offers free listening for users however this comes with limits such as the inability to freely select an single song from an album via the mobile app encouraging many to pay for the monthly subscription). Included in this total, the company reported that in 2020 they had received as increased of 30 million subscribers (perhaps due to the Covid-19 pandemic resulting in many to have more spare time to listen to music). Apple Music pales in comparison- the company reporting 72 million subscribers as of June 2020. It could be argued that this is a result of Apple Music’s exclusivity- only consumers who own a product like the iPhone, iPad or Mac from this company are able to download the service. However despite Apple being the leading smart phone brand worldwide in 2021 (20% market share in 2020) and Apple Music having 10 million more songs that Spotify- many, including myself, have still opted to still download and subscribe to Spotify on instead. Therefore, it is clear that the Spotify interface is a contributing factor encouraging users to use the streaming service.
