Apple Debuts Elevator Music 2.0 With Apple Music For Business

(Hypebot) — In an effort to dodge the copyright violation of playing Spotify or Apple Music in a public business, Apple plans to dust off the concept of ‘elevator music’ in a new service called Apple Music for Business.

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Guest post by Bobby Owsinski of Music 3.0

You may or may not be old enough to remember the horrible music that invaded your ears in department stores and office building elevators. In fact, the not-so-respectful term “elevator music” was applied to the syrupy cover versions of popular hits that you’d regularly hear in those places back then. There was some science involved in that it was designed to be very neutral and unoffensive, unless you happened to be in the music business, that is. Now Apple has released a more modern version of the same idea with its new Apple Music For Business offering.

You may not realize it, but using a streaming service in your local barbershop or restaurant is actually a violation of its terms. You can use Apple Music or Spotify for personal use, but not in a business. Although there’s nothing physically from stopping you from doing that, a copyright violation lawsuit can be quite expensive if you are caught. That’s why Apple Music For Business is actually a great strategic move that none of the other streaming services have tried yet.

While in the old days the music in a business was just trying not to be offensive to anyone and get them to relax and hopefully buy something, the new Apple service enables businesses to play a curated mix of Apple Music and custom playlists that connects its brand with its customers. The Apple Music for Business app makes it easy to schedule and manage music, and the platform allows it to scale to multiple locations as needed.

Apple Music for Business has already signed on many leading enterprises including Harrods, Levi’s, PizzaExpress, Everyman Cinema, and Apple’s own retail stores. It’s also currently available in 15 countries, which is a pretty good start.

The service is a partnership with PlayNetwork, who’s responsible for technology development, music curation, licensing, marketing and sales, and actually owns the direct relationship with the end-user businesses.

Will your favorite hardware store finally bring you the tunes you like when you’re buying a new paintbrush? Maybe, if its playlist is in tune with your tastes. One thing for sure is that we’re now a long way from the days of elevator music, and everyone should be glad of that.