Amazon set to launch music streaming service, partners Saregama

Amazon, the world’s largest online retailer, is set to launch its music streaming service in India.

The Seattle-based retail giant has partnered with entertainment services provider Saregama to expand the digital content and stream its catalog of over 1 lakh tracks on its music service Amazon Prime Music, reports ET.

However, the ad-free service is currently available to its Echo customers on preview basis and will later be available to all Prime members without additional cost.

Last week, Amazon signed a similar deal with Zee Music to add over 450 film soundtracks in Hindi and regional languages and 250 Independent artist contents to its music service.

Also Read: Amazon Prime announces three reality shows for Indian audience

Amazon Prime, which was launched in India 2016, has grown almost five times since the beginning of this year. The growth is the fastest among such subscribers for the Seattle-headquartered company across the globe.

Last year, the streaming giant had announced three reality formats for its Indian subscribers, out of which two were centered on local stand-up comedy while one a musical talent competition.

Also Read: Amazon’s Echo speakers now available in India, Prime Music to be next launch

The streaming giant had also launched premium voice activated Echo range of wireless speakers in India.

Amazon, which committed to invest $5 billion in India, has been lately focusing on launching its global services in the country. In 2013, the Kindle and its variants were introduced in India. In April last year, video streaming device Amazon Fire Stick was launched here.

The Prime Music will compete with music streaming services like Saavn, Gaana, Hungama and Apple Music in India. While rival Gaana claims to have crossed 92 million downloads in 2017, Hungama music crossed 50 million monthly active users worldwide in 2015 and Airtel’s Wynk has crossed 72 million downloads.