TIDAL, if you weren't aware, is a new music streaming platform that boasts high-quality audio, exclusive content and a better, fairer, deal for the artists and/or musicians involved.
Advertised as a wonderful alternative to the likes of Spotify and YouTube, to give fans near "Lossless" music, and artists both new and old more control over their own content and a better return for it.
It has, however, a major design flaw.
It's £20 a month.
That might not sound like a big deal, but it sort of is.
Think about the age we live in, most people consume entertainment on-the-fly via their mobile phones. Most use their phones to listen to music, browse the internet and watch YouTube (when better screens aren't available, time saving or convenient). Some people even watch entire MOVIES on their phones.
When the general public is used to, and largely fine with, this method of getting their fix; where does preservation of quality even come into it?
Now here's the crux of the matter:
The AVERAGE consumer CANNOT TELL THE DIFFERENCE between higher quality audio and a decent MP3.
I have a strong belief that a clear minded, objective person, upon using TIDAL for the first time would think something to the effect of "Well, sounds the same to me...".
They'll then realise that after the initial one-month free trail, they'll be paying £20 a month for "Well, sounds the same to me...".
I'm a musician, and the majority of my friends and colleges are also either musicians or at least passionate about it. And AS a bunch of young musicians from Salisbury, England... most of us aren't particularly well off, money-wise. So you can imagine what their reaction to £20 a month for "Well, sounds the same to me..." might be.
While TIDAL will obviously be a massive help to the industry and will become a fantastic platform for new musicians to be discovered and possibly get their big break, it simply isn't a good enough deal for the CONSUMERS; who will just continue to use Spotify and YouTube which, despite having tedious adverts, are FREE.
Remember monophonic ringtones? Remember how fucking atrocious they where? But at the time no one cared because it meant you could hear your favorite tune whenever your mates rang you up. Most people can easily let quality fall by the wayside for the sake of a quick fix, and TIDAL is anything but quick. Believe it or not, you need pretty fucking good internet to stream damn near LOSSLESS AUDIO.
As if that weren't enough, I have a feeling that TIDAL is being sneaky in trying to make an audio difference more noticeable...
I'm no expert, but I have a feeling that TIDAL boosts the low-end (the bass) of it's music, just slightly, to make it sound "deeper" or "richer" for when the average listener inevitably starts comparing TIDAL's audio to their own collection. NOW, this might just be a genuine result of the higher quality audio, but I'm pretty damn suspicious.
Anyway, I recommend trying out the one-month free trial and forming your own opinion, get back to me with it. Remember to cancel the damn thing as soon as you decide it's not worth it, should you do so, otherwise it'll renew automatically.
Bye for now.
-B
