Looks like Spotify might be working on another upgrade that will give them more of a fighting chance against the iPod. Forbes is reporting that Facebook is nearing a partnership with European music service. The integrated service would reportedly allow users to install Spotify and play music through their Facebook accounts. Insiders believe such a partnership could launch within one to two weeks. Unfortunately, this new service would only be available in locations where Spotify is available, or in other words not in the U.S. However, once Spotify finalizes deals with labels (whenever that might be), it’s pretty much guaranteed that we in the States will get “Facebook Music”… or “Spotify on Facebook” (the name still isn’t clear).
However, a new partnership between the two might not be a sure thing. While Forbes admitted that spokespeople are playing down the deal, Billboard.biz is reporting that nothing is a done deal, saying that Facebook is currently in negotiations with three music service sites (one of them being Spotify). Billboard also claims that it’s unlikely that Facebook will go exclusively with one music service. Either way, this further confirms that Facebook is finally making its way into music and media through partnerships, something that Mark Zuckerberg confirmed during the eG8 conference in Paris this past week.
If any social network can make a splash in the music industry, it’s Facebook. And no one is more aware of this Apple is very aware of this, seeing that they tried to create a partnership with them and their failing social music network site Ping before ultimately going with Twitter. So even if Spotify doesn’t get an exclusive deal with Facebook (the two already do have an smaller integrated partnership), it’ll still be a major boost for the European site when/if they ever make their U.S. debut. Then again, if rumors are true, we may be using Apple’s music cloud service before Spotify even comes to the States. Let the race begin!
