This could well be the year when the wider public decides that online streaming is the best way to consume music. After all, why spend time and money on CDs or downloads, when you can instantly stream that same music for free via your computer or, increasingly, your mobile phone? And if one service is going to provide that tipping point, it'sSpotify.com
Their application looks and works much like iTunes. The big difference is that Spotify gives you instant, legal access to millions of tracks without any charge. With all the big labels signed up, there's an astonishing range of albums available to hear in full; be it David Bowie's Hunky Dory, Nirvana's Nevermind, Tricky's Maxinquaye or every one of the UK's Top 10 bestselling albums of 2008. The Swedish boffins behind the site have even eradicated buffering; everything plays immediately. Before long, you'll find yourself using Spotify to listen to albums you own on CD, just because it's much easier.
What's the catch? Well, the free version of Spotify is supported by advertising, but you'll only hear one brief ad every 20-25 minutes (they all seem to be for government services at the moment). If these prove too annoying, you have the option of paying £10 a month, or £100 a year, to become a premium member and lose the ads. The only obstacle is that you need an invite to sign up for Spotify's free service. But, handily, it is currently offering a temporary registration link for UK users at tinyurl.com/spotifylink. We are among the first places to have access to the service; the web is full of postings from aggrieved American bloggers desperate to access it.
Some major acts have seemingly refused to have their material added: there is nothing on Spotify by the Beatles or Pink Floyd, and only a handful of tracks by Oasis and the Arctic Monkeys. But they're in the minority. Many acts have made available their entire back catalogues, including Madonna, U2, Coldplay, Eminem, Green Day and Stevie Wonder (Spotify hosts well over 1,000 Stevie tracks).
If you find yourself in need of inspiration, you can browse charts of the most popular tracks and artists in all Spotify-served countries (Estonia loves metal and the KLF). Alternatively, head to spotifyfriends.com, where you can check out other users' playlists and click to hear them in your player. Or simply click on Radio within Spotify, select a decade and genre and let it pick the tunes. However you choose to use the service, prepare to be impressed.
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