The music streaming wars have been heating up a good deal, as of late, thanks in no small part Spotify's [long-awaited US launch][3]. Since then, Rhapsody [bought][4] its one-time chief competitor Napster, both [Pandora][5] and [Rdio][6] underwent major redesigns and Mog finally launched a [Windows client][7]. Naturally, all of this has proven good news for the consumer, as services have a features arms race of sorts, gunning for the top spot. None of the contenders are quite perfect, of course -- when Spotify launched, for example, we couldn't help but note the absence of a browser-based option of the sort employed by Rdio and Pandora. Today's announcement still leaves open that possibility, but it does mark a new web-focused strategy for the company -- on that could arguably have a much larger impact on Spotify's fortunes than a simple browser-based UI.
Today marks the launch of the Spotify Play Button -- a name we assume the Swedish company settled on before Google announced the whole Android Market [rebranding thing][8]. The button is, essentially, a widget that allows site owners to embed songs and playlists directly from Spotify's massive catalog of songs. It's a simple idea, sure, but well executed, it could prove a major win in the service's attempt to stand out in the ever-more competitive world of music streaming. After all, embedding music on sites has long been a fairly haphazard deal -- unless you happen to have a deal with a proprietary player, it means snapping up something like a YouTube video, which often live in, at best, a legal gray area.
[Continue reading _Spotify launches Play Button in bid to become the web's default music player_][2]
[Spotify launches Play Button in bid to become the web's default music player][2] originally appeared on [Engadget][9] on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 06:00:00 EDT. Please see our [terms for use of feeds][10].
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[1]: http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2012/04/yacht-rock-spotify-600-lead.jpg
[2]: http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/11/spotify-play-button-launch/
[3]: http://www.engadget.com/2011/07/14/spotify-us-premium-service-hands-on/
[4]: http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/03/rhapsody-announces-plans-to-acquire-napster/
[5]: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/pandora-rolls-out-html5-redesign-to-everyone-drops-40-hour-list/
[6]: http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/13/rdio-redesign-hands-on/
[7]: http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/23/mog-opens-its-doors-to-windows-with-new-desktop-application/
[8]: http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/06/google-play-replaces-android-market/
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