We7, the UK-headquartered music streaming service, has closed a new undisclosed round of funding.
The new investment comes from existing investors Peter Gabriel and Eden Ventures, along with Qualcomm Incorporated (via its venture capital function) and Pentech Ventures, and will be used primarily for further European expansion (“multiple countries”) and to consolidate its position in the UK. → Read More
After pivoting somewhat to focus on the more economical Internet radio model, the UK’s We7 has launched a new, ad-supported app for Android.
Along with its headline price of free, the Radio app for phones running Google’s mobile OS supports offline playback. This means that personalised radio stations based on a user’s musical tastes or those curated by editors can be cached in advance so that they’ll continue to play outside of a 3G or WiFi connection, a commonly employed trick by mobile music ‘streaming’ services that not only provides uninterrupted playback but also potentially saves on data usage and associated costs, along with battery life. Although for a personalised Internet radio service, We7 is claiming a European first. → Read More
We7, the UK music streaming service, is launching in Ireland next Monday, reports MusicWeek and we can now confirm.
This is interesting not only because it’s the first time We7 has ventured beyond its native shores but also because Spotify, which until very recently was seen as a direct rival, has yet to launch in said country. The much hyped and well funded company is currently available in Sweden, Norway, Finland, the UK, France, Spain and the Netherlands but, as noted, not Ireland. (Or the U.S. for that matter.) → Read More
Navigating the choppy waters of ad-supported music, We7 hasn’t been afraid to change course. The UK startup began life as an innovative free music download service before transitioning to an on-demand browser-based offering. While most recently the company, which is backed by Peter Gabriel, Eden Venture and Spark Ventures, made a premium paid-for play with a desktop and mobile version sans-advertising.
Today, We7 is shifting focus once again in the belief that the route to mass market requires a lean-back experience more akin to Internet radio services like Pandora in the U.S. rather than a pure on-demand play such as European competitor Spotify. It’s also a model that sits more comfortably with We7′s ad-supported aspirations since music licensing fees for Internet radio are about a third of that charged for non subscription on-demand services. → Read More
Navigating the choppy waters of ad-supported music, We7 hasn’t been afraid to change course. The UK startup began life as an innovative free music download service before transitioning to an on-demand browser-based offering. While most recently the company, which is backed by Peter Gabriel, Eden Venture and Spark Ventures, made a premium paid-for play with a desktop and mobile version sans-advertising.
Today, We7 is shifting focus once again in the belief that the route to mass market requires a lean-back experience more akin to Internet radio services like Pandora in the U.S. rather than a pure on-demand play such as European competitor Spotify. It’s also a model that sits more comfortably with We7′s ad-supported aspirations since music licensing fees for Internet radio are about a third of that charged for non subscription on-demand services. → Read More
We7, the UK music streaming service and rival to the likes of Spotify in Europe, has launched its Android app, which is now available through the Android Marketplace. And to mark the full launch, the company is giving users a 2 week free trial by waiving the need for a ‘Premium Plus’ subscription, which is normally required to listen on the go, making it easy for Android handset touting users to experience the mobile version of We7.
Claiming to have been given a revamp compared to its iPhone counterpart, including a new User Interface, the We7 Android app offers unlimited streaming of music each month, along with the ability to ‘cache’ playlists for offline playback, negating the need to always be connected to the net.
Other features include: → Read More
We7, the UK music streaming service, has announced that its catalog now exceeds 6.5 million tracks. That in itself may not seem like such a big deal but consider this: at the same time last year, the music platform, which competes with the likes of Spotify, had around 3m tracks, under half of what is available today. Go back another year and a half and you’ll find that We7 didn’t have a single major label on-board so it shows how far things have come.
It’s also worth remembering that We7, which is backed by Peter Gabriel, Eden Ventures, and Spark Ventures, didn’t start out with a streaming model, although it was a pioneer in ad-supported music. Its original offering focused on downloads, with each MP3 containing the ad itself. After a set duration and, therefore, number of ad impressions, users could re-download a clean and ad-free version of the song. Back then users were very accustomed to ‘owning’ their music and so it seemed like the right way to go. → Read More
One of the key advantages of on-demand music streaming services compared with traditional radio is that as well as listening to the music you choose you can do away with the DJ’s endless chatter and other interruptions. But there is a potential downside: being isolated from current events, such as breaking news.
We7, the UK music streaming service and rival to the likes of Spotify in Europe, thinks it has a solution in the form of a partnership with The Guardian Media Group-owned GMG Radio, the company behind stations such as Smooth, Real and Rock Radio. Under the agreement, GMG Radio will provide We7 listeners with breaking news via the Real Radio brand, with the two companies essentially creating a kind of hybrid offering, which potentially mixes the best of on-demand and live radio. → Read More
One of the key advantages of on-demand music streaming services compared with traditional radio is that as well as listening to the music you choose you can do away with the DJ’s endless chatter and other interruptions. But there is a potential downside: being isolated from current events, such as breaking news.
We7, the UK music streaming service and rival to the likes of Spotify in Europe, thinks it has a solution in the form of a partnership with The Guardian Media Group-owned GMG Radio, the company behind stations such as Smooth, Real and Rock Radio. Under the agreement, GMG Radio will provide We7 listeners with breaking news via the Real Radio brand, with the two companies essentially creating a kind of hybrid offering, which potentially mixes the best of on-demand and live radio. → Read More
Perhaps acknowledging that the competitive landscape has changed, Spotify has introduced new pricing plans today. Premium desktop and mobile access is now split into two separate tiers, £4.99 and £9.99 per-month in the UK respectively.
Rival We7 introduced identical pricing when it launched its premium offering in late January this year, while US-based MOG is also planning to enter Britain at a very competitive price point, according to reports. → Read More
[UK] It’s probably tricky to time these things to perfection, since Apple pulls the strings.
The UK Spotify competitor, We7, has had its iPhone app approved and is now available to download from the iTunes App Store. The problem is that the associated premium music subscription service, needed to run the app, doesn’t seemed to have launched yet.
Or at least that’s how it looks. → Read More
It’s probably tricky to time these things to perfection, since Apple pulls the strings.
The UK Spotify competitor, We7, has had its iPhone app approved and is now available to download from the iTunes App Store. The problem is that the associated premium music subscription service, needed to run the app, doesn’t seemed to have launched yet.
Or at least that’s how it looks.
Judging by the site’s subscription page and reviews published in the App Store, whilst you can download the app, since you can’t yet subscribe to the mobile version of We7′s music subscription service, it’s currently useless. → Read More
[UK] Ad-supported music streaming service We7 and Spotify competitor has big plans to go mobile. That much was already known – an iPhone and Android app has been in the works for sometime. Earlier this month, however, CEO Steve Purdham surprised attendees at an event in Manchester by telling them that while the We7 iPhone app was ready, its release was purposely being held back. The reason, he explained, is that it could drive too many new users to the service before the advertising side of the business can afford to support them.
In other words, the economics of ad-supported music don’t yet make sense, forcing We7 to focus on ‘sustainable growth’ or acquiring users at a rate somewhere inline with any increase in ad-revenue. Where this leaves competitor Spotify’s land grab approach to user numbers is clearly open to debate and Purdham is more than happy to chime in (hint: he thinks they’re heading for a crash).
On that note, TechCrunch Europe has learned that We7′s mobile offering will in fact be launched in Q1 2010 and, perhaps unsurprisingly, will be part of a new premium subscription offering. We’ve also managed to source some, admittedly, blurry photos of We7 running on the iPhone. The app that you can’t have – yet. But first, let’s dive into the thinking behind We7′s decision to postpone their mobile plans. → Read More
GQ.com will be joining the likes of The Guardian and NME in using we7‘s streaming service on its site as of next week. The service will be styled as a jukebox stocked with playlists compiled by GQ’s editorial team. As per we7′s model, GQ online readers will be able to listen for free and buy any tracks they like via the integrated download feature. → Read More
Ad supported music download service We7 has taken $6 million Series A is a round led by musician Peter Gabriel and Spark Ventures, with Eden Ventures also participating. Oxford, UK based We7 offers free music and video for download that is ad supported. The company notes that their model is “artist friendly at all times,” by making sure that rights owners get paid and artists maintain control over their Intellectual Property The services currently have just shy of 100,000 users who have downloaded over 1 million tracks. CrunchBase Information we7 Information provided by CrunchBase → Read More
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