This is a comparison of online music storage services (Cloud Music Services), Internet services that allow uploads of personally owned or licensed music to the cloud for listening on multiple devices.[1]

Previously, there were three large services—Amazon Music, Apple's iTunes Match, and YouTube Music[2]—each incorporating an online music store (see comparison), with purchased songs from the associated music store not counting toward storage limits. Other than additional storage space, the main additional feature provided with an annual fee by Apple (and formerly Amazon.com) was "scan-and-match", which examined music files on a computer and added a copy of matched tracks to the user's music locker without having to upload the files. Google provided both a large amount of storage space and the scan-and-match feature at no cost.

Amazon was the first of the initially-significant players to launch their cloud music locker service, in late March 2011, and the first to discontinue it, on 30 April 2018.[3] Amazon Music launched without obtaining any new music streaming licenses, which upset the major record labels.[4] Amazon eventually negotiated licenses before launching scan-and-match.

Google launched their service less than a month and a half after Amazon, also without obtaining any new licenses.[5] Like Amazon, Google eventually negotiated licenses before launching scan-and-match. In 2018, Google announced a transition from Google Play Music to YouTube Music,[6] and in May, 2020, Google had created a transfer tool to migrate added albums, uploads, history, and playlists.[7] On October 22, 2020, Google Play Music was discontinued.[8]

Apple was the last of the first three services to launch, which they did on October 12, 2011. However, Apple had negotiated ahead of time with the major record labels for new licenses. Apple's product is the only of the three to remain in operation today (see iTunes Match, below).

For streaming services where a person is unable to upload their own music, but is limited to music provided by the service, such as Pandora Radio and Spotify, see Comparison of on-demand streaming music services. See that article also for information on subscription streaming services provided by four of the companies below (Google Play Music All Access, Apple's Apple Music, Amazon's Prime Music, and Microsoft's Groove Music Pass).

Comparison

MusicSync Media Leap YouTube Music iBroadcast iTunes Match VOX Music Cloud
Owner: MusicSync LLC Media Leap Inc. YouTube LLC (Google LLC) iBroadcast Media, LLC Apple Inc. Coppertino Inc.
Launch date: 2020-10-25 2020-12-11 2015-11-12 2012-06-15[9] 2011-10-12 2015-04-15[10]
Currently Available: Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Web Client: No Yes Yes Yes No No
Windows Client: No No No Yes No In beta
Android App: Yes Yes Yes Yes No No
iOS App: Yes Yes Yes Yes[11] Yes
Other listening platforms: Chromecast,

Android TV, Android Auto

 Google Home, Sonos, Chromecast, Android TV, Android Auto Apple TV, other AirPlay macOS, Apple TV via AirPlay, Chromecast, Sonos[12]
Upload software: Web browser and via Google Drive client Web browser, in-app upload Web browser[13] Windows, macOS, Linux, Web browser Windows, macOS VOX Player for Mac, Web browser
Music Format: MP3, MP4/M4A/ALAC/AAC, OGG, OPUS, WMA, FLAC, WAV, APE, WV, TTA, MPC, AIFF, DSD (DFF/DSF), MKA, MPGA, TAK, FLV MP3, OGG, FLAC . AAC[14] AAC, FLAC, MKA, MP3, OGG, PCM AAC, MP3 AAC, AIFF, ALAC, APE, FLAC, M4A, MP3, OGG, WAV, WMA
Filetypes matched: MP3, MP4/M4A/ALAC/AAC, OGG, OPUS, WMA, FLAC, WAV, APE, WV, TTA, MPC, AIFF, DSD (DFF/DSF), MKA, MPGA, TAK, FLV None None[15] None AAC, AIFF, ALAC, MP3, WAV None
Filetypes transcoded: None None FLAC, M4A, MP3, OGG, WMA AIFF, ALAC, WAV None
Maximum file size: No Limit No Limit 300 MB 200 MB or 2 hours[16] 250 MB[17]
Free Bitrate: Original Quality Original Quality 256 kbit/s[13] 128 kbit/s[18] None None
Premium Bitrate: Original Quality Original Quality 256 kbit/s 320 kbit/s or Original[19] 256 kbit/s Original Quality
Free Storage:[lower-alpha 1] Limited to Google Drive free plan 1 TB Unlimited Unlimited None[20] None[21]
Premium Storage: Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited 100,000 files[lower-alpha 2][22] Unlimited
Premium service features: Unlimited storage Ads-free, background play, download music offline, use audio-only mode, travel with YouTube Music, shuffle downloads, Apple Carplay & Android Auto compatibility[23] Higher bitrate streaming, equalizer, Android Auto, Carplay Custom Equalizer, Download music offline, Carplay, World Radio Stations, BS2B, Gap/Crossfade, Hog Mode, Sync Sample Rate and more premium audio features [24]
Premium pricing: Based on Google Drive paid plan [25] $5 per month $9.99 per month (YouTube Music Premium)

$11.99 per month (YouTube Premium)

 Free during Beta, $3.99 per month after launch[19] Annual fee of $24.99 (US), £21.99 (UK), €24.99 (FR), $39.99 (AU)

Included with $9.99 per month Apple Music subscription

 $4.99 per month,

$49.99 annually (VOX Premium)

Premium service countries: Worldwide 94 (YouTube Music Premium)[26]

95 (YouTube Premium)[26]

 117[27] Worldwide
  1. ↑ Purchased music files from associated music store do not count toward space limits.
  2. ↑ In the United States and Australia, iTunes Match also gets you ad-free iTunes Radio listening.

Former or defunct services

  • Amazon Music storage, started in March 2009, offered storage space for 250 uploaded tracks (MP3 or AAC up to 100MB each) in free version or 250,000 tracks in premium version, as well as web players for major operating systems, Fire TV, Roku, and Sonos sound systems. Amazon did not allow podcasts, ringtones, or audiobooks to be uploaded.[28] Amazon started phasing out cloud storage from December 2017.[29]
  • Best Buy Music Cloud debuted in June 2011 to unfavourable reviews.[30]
  • Google Play Music Music locker, store, and streaming service debuted in May 2011, and shut down October 2020. Google has replaced Play Music with YouTube Music.[31]
  • Groove Music by Microsoft debuted in 2015, linking Microsoft's Groove music player to OneDrive cloud storage. It allowed storing up to 5GB of music in AAC, MP3 and WMA formats. Playback was possible on devices running Windows, iOS or Android as well as Xbox game consoles.
  • Lala started in 2006, was purchased by Apple, and shut down on May 31, 2010.
  • Mougg started in 2010, renamed to Mashup in 2012,[32][33] the domain ceased to function in December 2012. In April 2013, the service returned to its original name.
  • MP3tunes started in late 2005, fought major record labels in Capitol Records, Inc. v. MP3Tunes, LLC, and closed in 2012 after filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.[34]
  • mSpot Music started in May 2010,[35] was purchased by Samsung,[36] and shut down on October 15, 2012.
  • My.MP3.com started in January 2000, fought major record labels in UMG v. MP3.com, and the service was discontinued by a new owner.[37]
  • Samsung Music Hub was only available for a few Samsung devices[38] and was retired on 1 July 2014.[39]
  • Style Jukebox, debuted in September 2012, offered up to 2TB of music storage (10GB in the trial period) and music players for the common operating systems, and supported all major file formats incl. high-resolution audio. The service was discontinued in December 2017.
  • Ubuntu One only included music features (web and mobile app playback, 20 GB storage) with the paid plan. The service was shut down on 1 June 2014.[40]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Cloud Music Comparison: What’s the Best Service for Streaming Your Library Everywhere? Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, Lifehacker, 15 June 2011
  2. ↑ Google Music, iTunes Match, and Amazon Cloud Drive: Digital Music Services Comparison Archived 2012-12-17 at the Wayback Machine, PC World, 17 November 2011
  3. ↑ "Amazon Music to end support for streaming your uploaded MP3s". 20 December 2017. Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2017-12-27.
  4. ↑ Amazon faces backlash over "music locker" service Archived 2015-10-05 at the Wayback Machine, Reuters, Phil Wahba and Paul Thomasch, Mar 29, 2011
  5. ↑ Unlicensed: Are Google Music and Amazon Cloud Player illegal? Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, Ars Technica, July 4, 2011
  6. ↑ "YouTube Music and YouTube Premium are now live in the U.S., 16 other nations". 4 April 2019. Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  7. ↑ "YouTube Music is making it simple to transfer over your Google Play Music library". Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  8. ↑ "Google Play Music is now officially dead, dead, dead (Update: ... Dead)". 22 October 2020. Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  9. ↑ We have released v.1.0 of the iBroadcast Android app. It is available now on Google Play. Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, iBroadcast Facebook page, 2012-06-15
  10. ↑ Coppertino Launches New LOOP Music Locker Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, MacRumors, 2015-04-15
  11. ↑ Vox Plays Any Music File on iOS, Streams Music from a New Music Locker Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, CNET, April 15, 2015
  12. ↑ "Play Lossless with Sonos via VOX". 24 July 2015. Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  13. 1 2 "Upload your music - YouTube Music Help". support.google.com. Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
  14. ↑ "Select or Change your Audio Quality - YouTube Music Help". Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2020-11-02.
  15. ↑ "How YouTube Music uploads differ from Play Music: Everything you need to know". 9 March 2020. Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2020-11-02.
  16. ↑ iTunes Store: Subscribing to iTunes Match Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, Apple.com
  17. ↑ https://vox.rocks/loop-music-cloud-storage/how-to-use#:~:text=File%20size%20limit%20is%20250Mb,streaming%20or%20saving%20for%20offline Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine.
  18. ↑ "IBroadcast - Frequently Asked Questions". Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2020-11-02.
  19. 1 2 "IBroadcast - Frequently Asked Questions". Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2020-11-02.
  20. ↑ iCloud storage plan overview Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, Apple.com
  21. ↑ https://vox.rocks/loop-music-cloud-storage/how-to-use#:~:text=File%20size%20limit%20is%20250Mb,streaming%20or%20saving%20for%20offline Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine.
  22. ↑ "Apple support page showing 100,000 track limit". Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2015-12-23.
  23. ↑ "Explore YouTube Music Premium benefits - YouTube Music Help". support.google.com. Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
  24. ↑ "VOX Premium. Advanced music player for Mac & iPhone. Equalizer, Music Cloud, Online Radio".
  25. ↑ "Plans & Pricing - Google One".
  26. 1 2 "Paid memberships available locations - YouTube Help". support.google.com. Archived from the original on 2019-04-04. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
  27. ↑ iTunes in the Cloud and iTunes Match Availability Archived 2014-10-29 at the Wayback Machine, Apple Support
  28. ↑ Google Music and Amazon Cloud Player take on iTunes Match. Who wins? Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, Ars Technica, January 17, 2013
  29. ↑ Amazon.com, Inc. "About Amazon Music Subscriptions". Amazon. Archived from the original on 12 February 2021. Retrieved 20 January 2018. The Amazon Music Storage subscription plans (free and paid) are being retired. Beginning January 15, 2018, no new subscriptions will be accepted.
  30. ↑ Best Buy's Music Cloud: Skip It, For Now Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, PCMag.com, June 22, 2011
  31. ↑ "Google Play Music is now officially dead, dead, dead (Update: ... Dead)". 22 October 2020. Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  32. ↑ Review: Download Music From the Cloud, Rolling Stone, 7 December 2010
  33. ↑ Mougg: Another great option for streaming your music library Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, The Next Web, 29 November 2010
  34. ↑ Music labels force pioneering MP3tunes into bankruptcy Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, Ars Technica, May 14, 2012
  35. ↑ mSpot New Music Cloud Service Archived 2013-04-17 at the Wayback Machine, May 19, 2010
  36. ↑ Samsung boosts its mobile ecosystem with mSpot purchase Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, GigaOM, May 9, 2012
  37. ↑ Amazon AutoRip: How the labels held back progress for 14 years Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, Ars Technica, January 11, 2013
  38. ↑ mSpot Music is closing on October 15, 2012 Archived November 2, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, mSpot blog, 9/19/2012
  39. ↑ Samsung to retire Music Hub streaming service Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, CNet.com
  40. ↑ Silber, Jane (2 April 2014). "Shutting down Ubuntu One file services". Canonical Blog. Canonical Ltd. Archived from the original on 16 October 2016. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
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