The Yeezy Sound trademark states the service will be responsible for “streaming music, audio, images, video, and other multimedia over the internet, mobile device, wireless networks, and other computer networks and electronic communication networks.” That is essentially what services such as Apple Music, Spotify, Tidal, and YouTube offer. Yeezy Sound will also be “providing online chat rooms, online electronic bulletin boards and community forums” for users to communicate with one another.
The name and early part of the trademark point toward a music streaming service, but the more you read, the grander West’s ambition appears. The trademark states Yeezy Sound would be responsible for “broadcasting of cable television, television and radio programs” as well as “video streaming services via the internet, featuring independent films and movies.” That sounds a lot like Hulu’s live TV service which allows subscribers to stream 50 live TV channels and binge on Hulu’s on-demand library of major and independent films.
If you followed West at all throughout his career, then something this ambitious is seemingly Kanye being Kanye. In 2012, West presented his Cruel Summer film in a seven-screen pyramid structure. He filed a patent for multiple screens for immersive audio/video experience in January 2013.
Yeezy Sound may happen, and if it would also be in direct competition with Jay-Z’s Tidal, a position West has found himself in, as of late. In July, West’s attorneys reportedly informed Tidal he would no longer put out music exclusively on Tidal due to West not receiving the money he feels he’s owed from the streaming service. A source claims West is requesting $3 million for all the money he put into the marketing of his The Life of Pablo album and an undisclosed number of subscribers he brought to Tidal. West was one of the 16 artists with an ownership stake in Tidal that were on-stage at the launch event in 2015.
