Label-Backed Streaming Service Songl Officially Launches

Australian-based music streaming service Songl has officially launched today, after re-appearing online last week.

A joint venture between Southern Cross Austereo [SCA], Universal Music and Sony Music, Songl CEO Mark Shaw introduced the service in Sydney this morning. Subscription based with a limited free 'radio channel' trial version on web browsers, the service has launched with the aim of harnessing the existing audience of SCA's radio programs and informing them about music streaming services.

The service will push 'celebrity playlists' hard in their launch months, with on air talent from the Today Network stations, such as Fifi & Jules and Hamish & Andy, as well as celebrities like Bob Geldolf and Delta Goodrem to program “guest playlists”.

Admitting they were entering a crowded music streaming market in Australia, Shaw told theMusic.com.au that they had held their re-launch into the market until they had assessed other services. He also refrained from commenting on the suggestion that there are too many services to survive the next 12 months.

“We'll see what happens. Our position is despite the hype, revenues for subscription service are very, very small. There was a report that came out of ARIA that said 0.5 percent of all music revenue was attributable to streaming, that's $2 million. That's not a very large number. So we are coming to the market with a desire to educate the market about streaming, and we can do that because we've got media support with SCA and their various assets that we can utilise.”

Another feature they're profiling heavily is the ability to store up to 1,000 tracks offline, so they can be accessed outside of wi-fi areas without draining mobile data usage.

With deals in place with Warner and other independent labels, the service claims to have seven million songs in the service, with ambitions to make that ten million. Their catalogue is largely identical to others on the market, and it's only when you get into niche genres that it has holes. Sydney post-hardcore band Grand Fatal, who appear on Rdio, are not on Sognl, while neither are now-defunct influential Norwegian hardcore band JR Ewing, who appear on MOG.

There is a strong classical catalogue, but a technician admitted to theMusic today that they were having issues presenting those tracks in the service given the naming conventions can't be simplified as easily as contemporary popular music.

Beyond the free service, the monthly subscription costs $12.99 per month.