Should there be Tidal, the music application Jay-Z? – Release

It was a tad immodest this international launch streaming service Tidal. There was Jay-Z, its owner, silent and triumphant; Nicki Minaj, Beyonce and Madonna on a platform; Daft Punk and DJ Deadmau5, disguised as usual; public cries recalling the darkest hours of Hit Machine ; Stars who sign one by one, the official launch of the application, as if they settled an international conflict (conflict they apparently resolved in a meeting broadcast in a video where everyone oscillates between solemn gaze and laughter . uproariously)

We mostly hear the bombastic speeches of a smiling mistress of ceremonies, Alicia Keys: “Tidal strives to maintain an industry that promotes health and sustainability of our art and our industry worldwide “

But what” revolution. “- turquoise apparently, according to the Twitter accounts of shareholders stars Tidal musical -application going -she made, when compared to its competitors, Spotify and Deezer? Its main advantage would be to offer the opportunity to listen to the songs in FLAC (either “Free lossless audio codec”), which is equivalent to CD quality – even if the competitor Qobuz service already offers this compression quality. A test is also provided by Tidal so that the listener checks the audio equipment allows him to hear the difference.

VERSION NO FREE

But if an efficient installation or compatible music player, it succeeds only difficult to distinguish one song from FLAC good quality MP3. Let us add that we must also deal with the price difference, consequential 9.99 euros for the MP3 version 19.99 euros for FLAC. Unlike competitors freemium ad-funded, Tidal does not offer free version.

The presence of the clips in HD quality is another asset of Tidal. But fans of independent music will be for their expenses. We will find nothing of the folk-rock band Midlake, or Devin The Dude rapper (these are however not strangers, and their audience is not exactly confidential). Furthermore, no possibility, for now, save them offline: so forget your trips by metro and TGV together images of your favorite artists

In fact, most subscribers. Spotify or Deezer will not see any real differences between their service and Tidal. The catalogs are practically the same, Taylor Swift, for those interested in more about Jay-Z’s streaming service. The offline feature is also available, such as the premium versions of its competitors. But with an application that navigation is not always intuitive (on the screen of the present program, you can not find a piece in one click) … In short, only the best equipped music lovers will have interest to adopt Tidal … Or the fans of Taylor Swift.

As for the sore subject, namely the remuneration of artists, he was strangely absent from the debates. Like its competitors, Tidal reverse artists streamed copyright. One of the leaders of Tidal, Vania Schlogel, explained that these royalties are higher than those paid by the competition (without specifying any amount). With Spotify, for example, an average of between 0,006 reverse dollar and 0.0084 dollar streamed song.

“The purpose of all this is to get people to respect the music again, recognize its value” , said Jay-Z, adding “Water is free. Music costs 6 dollars, and yet nobody wants to pay for it. One should drink for free from the tap – it is so beautiful. And if you want to hear the most beautiful song in the world, then finance the artists’ . It’s beautiful like Taylor Swift.