Just call Xbox Music “Groove” now. Groovy, man.
Over the years, Xbox Music has been a pretty decent service, but it lacks the showiness and hype of immensely popular products like Spotify, and more recenly, the just launched Apple Music. In an effort to distance itself from a brand that doesn’t scream “music,” Microsoft is renaming the product Groove. Admittedly, it’s a pretty good name. (Xbox Video will be getting the infinitely more boring Movies & TV.)
Besides a new interface Microsoft claims will be magically easy to use, the new app is getting OneDrive integration that mimics some of the storage locker options offered by Google Play Music and Apple Music. If you’re a subscriber, you’ll be able to upload your music to Microsoft’s cloud storage and then access it alongside the Groove streaming music catalogue across desktop, mobile, and yes, your Xbox. Though it’s not exactly new to the world of streaming music it’s definitely a nice addition for people who are customers. (I see you Microsoft fanbois!) Woohoo! All your Grateful Dead bootlegs, in the cloud.
The coolest part by far here is pricing: You can either pay $US10 per month (likely to be $11.99 in Australia) or $US100 per year. Saving $US20 a year might not be a big deal to all you moneybags people out there, but it’s something. A cheeseburger and a couple a beers, courtesy of Microsoft. We’re told that most of the big changes lie ahead. Let’s hope so. Spotify ain’t slowing down, and that new Apple Music Goliath is looking mighty imposing.