Report: Apple Wants Exclusive Streaming Rights From Artists

Apple is looking for exclusive content from big-name artists, says a new report. Specifically named were Florence and the Machine and Taylor Swift, but it's possible Apple had even larger aspirations. In a recent interview, Kanye West hinted he recently turned down a multi-million dollar deal with Apple, though he didn't really discuss what it entailed. The artists were approached to provide content for Beats Music, which has gone largely untouched since Apple purchased it last year. It's also said to be the service Apple is leveraging for their rumored streaming service.

Florence and the Machine are set to debut a record in June, according to Bloomberg. That's right around the time WWDC will be — which is where it's believed Apple will unveil their new streaming service.

And we all know how much Apple loves dropping albums on us during events.

Taylor Swift is also in talks to launch music via Beats, the report claims. No other artists were noted, but it's also strange timing. The notoriously rambling Kanye West didn't exactly say he gave up exclusive streaming via Apple for Tidal, but this report and Tidal's over-the-top exclusive content deals dovetail with West saying he left Apple hanging.

So Kanye turns down Apple for something, and the company is talking to others about exclusive content — some of which drops right around WWDC. Also, Apple was previously said to be poaching Tidal artists; one of them is Swift.

It's currently believed we'll see Apple debut their service at $9.99/month — standard pricing for streaming services. Existing Beats Music technology is believed to be leveraged, but the service could end up re-branded under the iTunes umbrella. either way, we hope Apple keeps it available for Android, too, and provides streaming access to the entire iTunes catalog.

Source: Bloomberg