Apple makes strategic business move with better audio quality
Streaming service Apple Music takes on a new frontier, announcing that it will provide users a more dynamic auditory experience. Listeners will be able to stream music in higher quality using the lossless audio feature, which essentially allows them to control the quality of the audio being streamed.
Lossless audio is defined as a format in which sound data is maintained despite the file being compressed. In simpler terms, lossless audio uses algorithms to preserve details in songs that would have otherwise been redacted in lossy audio formats, such as MP3 and WMA.
What Apple is doing isn’t revolutionary. Streaming services, such as Tidal, Deezer and Amazon, have already been offering music in high-fidelity lossless audio. However they failed to be contenders to streaming giants like Apple and Spotify due to their limited musical catalogue, and, for Amazon specifically, additional fees that come with streaming lossless audio.
Aside from quantifiable quality, Apple aims to improve listener’s experience in an abstract manner by introducing spatial audio – which gives one the ability to listen to music coming from different directions, creating an immersive ‘surround sound’ sensation. However the high tech does come with a string of flaws, including the fact that not all devices and headphones offer the feature.
However, despite its inconsistencies as well as being late to the party, one cannot ignore that this is a smart business move. Spatial audio is an exclusive feature and Apple had just recently added a new pair of headphones to the airpods series lineup. Put two and two together, and you might just find yourself watching Apple capitalise on compatibility and technological ingenuity.
By making advances in audio, not only is Apple increasing the quality of music on its streaming service, but also consumer experience. In an industry that relies solely on demand and consumerism and beating contenders like Spotify to the punch, Apple’s future in music looks incredibly bright.