TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service

In an ambitious move, the mega popular Chinese short-video platform TikTok has introduced its own subscription-based music streaming service. The new venture aims to pose a significant challenge to established industry titans, namely Spotify and Apple Music. According to TechCrunch, the company has rolled out its exclusive service, named "TikTok Music," in Australia, Mexico, and Singapore.

The rollout expands upon the recent launches in Brazil and Indonesia, taking place just a fortnight ago. TikTok Music enables users to sync their existing TikTok accounts, allowing them to listen to, download, and share a plethora of music tracks.

Promising access to major record labels including Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and Sony Music, TikTok Music boasts an expansive music library. "TikTok Music is a new kind of music service that combines the power of music discovery on TikTok with a music streaming service offering millions of tracks from thousands of artists," a company spokesperson stated.

The company disclosed its plans for beta testing TikTok Music in Australia, Mexico, and Singapore, teasing further updates about the service's launch in the upcoming months.

In an attempt to garner early users, TikTok has invited individuals in the mentioned countries to partake in the TikTok Music closed beta test, offering a complimentary three-month trial of the service.

Pricing details suggest the service will cost $8.16 per month in Australia, $6.86 in Mexico, and $7.48 in Singapore. Given TikTok's current reputation as a popular tool for music discovery, which often helps popularize songs featured in viral videos, the move to provide a standalone music service indicates a direct competition with industry giants, Spotify and Apple.

The new music service goes beyond just streaming, offering full versions of viral TikTok songs, real-time access to lyrics, collaborative playlist creation with friends, importing of personal music libraries, and a unique lyric search feature to find songs. With such distinctive offerings, TikTok Music promises to add a novel spin to the music streaming landscape.