Jay-Z’s Tidal music streaming app tumbles out of iTunes Top 700 chart

Jay-Z’s Tidal music streaming app tumbles out of iTunes Top 700 chart

Tidal, Jay-Z's high-profile music streaming service, has failed to make a place for itself amidst a market of Spotify and Pandora users.

Tidal is dead on arrival. Jay-Z’s high-profile music streaming service, which launched a month ago with a star-studded event in New York, has failed to make a place for itself amidst a market of Spotify and Pandora users. According to a report from Gigwise, the mobile app for the service has fallen out of the iTunes Top 700 chart, and is “now less popular than a QR reader.”

The reasons for Tidal’s failure are numerous. For one thing, the streaming service has been endlessly criticized for its launch, a lavish event featuring stars like Kanye West, Rihanna, Jack White, Usher, Madonna, Daft Punk, and others. The subscription-based streaming platform was billed as the first artist-owned music service, and as a way for artists to be fairly compensated for their work.

One of the big criticisms of Spotify has been that artists make fractions of a cent for their streams, and Tidal was designed to change that trend. However, Jay-Z’s decision to launch Tidal in the public eye, with a slew of very rich, very recognizable artists at his back, has drawn ire for failing to represent the musicians who actually struggle to make a living in today’s industry.

Add the fact that, unlike Spotify and Pandora, Tidal has no free streaming options, and it’s no wonder Jay-Z’s big music service has failed to make much of an impression with listeners. What is surprising is just how far the app for the service has fallen on the iTunes charts. Music streaming services are popular on Apple’s App Store, with Pandora at number 7, Spotify at number 23, and various other music apps populating the top 100. Tidal, meanwhile, has dropped out of the top 700 chart, which means it is barely a blip on the radar as far as daily downloads and interest go.

At this rate, the question is whether Tidal will still be around by Christmas. With Apple reportedly working on a game-changing music streaming service of its own, the likely answer seems to be “No.”

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