Apple Music's iOS 10 Update Takes On Spotify

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The 17 million Apple Music subscribers will get access to a fresh new batch of tunes from the streaming service when they update their iOS devices to iOS 10 on September 13.

The company has released its My New Music Mix playlist for Apple Music on the iOS 10 operating system. It’s a personalized list of 25 songs that is updated each Friday and based on a listener’s previous streaming history.

The new feature will compete with Spotify’s popular Discover Weekly playlist, which is updated each Monday. Apple previously announced the feature, then called the Discovery Mix, at its Worldwide Developers Conference in June.

In addition to the My New Music Mix playlist, the company has launched a list that will be updated each Wednesday called My Favorites Mix. It includes songs that a user has played many times before, alongside songs that the company’s algorithm thinks sound similar. This playlist is designed for those who are set in their musical ways, but who might want to hear some new jams from time to time, rather than 25 songs that they don’t know all at once.

Whether or not Apple’s algorithm will prove as beloved by streaming listeners as Spotify’s Discover Weekly remains to be seen, but given the company’s decade-plus history as a force in the digital music industry, Apple probably had plenty of internal data with which to hone its music-matching skills. Apple Music itself has been a success for the company, with Apple presently accruing nearly 1 million new paid subscribers each month.

That growth has largely been fueled by exclusive releases from big-name artists, with the company getting first rights to more than 70 key releases in the past year.

“Apple Music has become the premiere destination for new and existing artists to launch their music,” said CEO Tim Cook at the company’s press event today, doubling down on the company’s approach to subscriber acquisition.

Still, adding features is always a great way to get new users, and the company was smart to create two rivals to Spotify’s Discover Weekly playlist.

The new playlists can be found in the “For You” section of the Apple Music application. Those without a beta will have to wait patiently for the imminent iOS 10 launch.

Apple Music’s iOS 10 update includes new personalized playlists to compete with Spotify

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