TikTok bosses quietly launch Spotify rival called Resso – but only some people are allowed to use it
A NEW music streaming app has entered the market courtesy of the company behind the Generation Z sensation TikTok.
The TikTok owners have called their new music service Resso and will be launching it in India and Indonesia as they attempt to take on the highly competitive music market.
ByteDance, TikTok's owners, were first rumoured to be considering competing with the likes of Spotify, SoundCloud and Apple Music late last year.
Reports suggest that Resso will be a "social music streaming app" with some similarities to TikTok.
It's said to have a swipe-to-skip interface and will focus on viral connect and social interaction.
This may make it stand out from other popular music apps which are often more about solo listening.
As soon as Resso opens music is said to start.
Users will also be encouraged to share lyrics and comment on the music their listening to.
Sharing full length songs will also be encouraged.
Users will have the option of sharing straight to other social media platforms like Instagram Stories.
Every song will also come with something called a six second 'Vibe video' that will play in the background and can be made by users themselves.
Resso's launch in India and Indonesia will see people offered a free week-long trial of the premium features.
After this the app will be offered free with ads or can come without adverts for $1.35 (£1.05) a month on Android and $1.60 (£1.24) on iOS.
The audio bitrate, meaning the amount of data processed over a period of time, will also differ between the free and paid for versions.
The free version will be limited to 128Kbps whereas the paid subscription will get users 256Kbps.
We don't know how many songs will be available on the app but ByteDance is said to have reached agreements with Sony Music and Warner Music.
India is a big market for TikTok with around 200 million users.
It makes sense that ByteDance would choose to launch there before deciding whether to branch out to other countries.
However, they will still face challenges in the crowded music app market and convincing people to pay for the service.
The news of the new app launch comes as TikTok has been under fire for some controversial videos.
The app has been accused of being a hotbed for animal cruelty and encouraging children to take part in dangerous challenges.
We recently showed six mums what kids are really watching on TikTok and they were horrified by the porn and puppy slapping.
What is TikTok?
Here's the official description from the NSPCC's Net Aware...
- TikTok is a social media app where users can record and upload short video clips. In August 2018, TikTok merged with Musical.ly, meaning all users with Musical.ly accounts were moved to TikTok. We’ve pulled together some information about the app and how to keep your children safe while using it.
- The majority of clips in TikTok include young people lip syncing and dancing to songs or comedy sketches (skits). Users can watch clips posted by other members, and can set their videos to be viewed publicly to other users or privately to friends (also known as followers).
- Like Snapchat, TikTok has filters where users can record their videos. It also includes other additional video editing features such as slow motion or speeding up videos. What makes this app popular with young people is the collaborative element where TikTok users can reply to one another and do joint videos on a split screen or participate in user created challenges.
- TikTok users can send messages to each other within the app; privacy settings for this can be changed to allow a user to communicate with all other TikTok users or just to friends. TikTok has a similar social media element like Instagram and Twitter, where users can follow each other and like content.
- If your child is using TikTok, we recommend speaking to them about how they can use this app safely.
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In other news, Twitter has plans to add a vanishing Tweet feature called 'Fleets'.
WhatsApp’s new dark mode branded ‘ugly' and 'gross’ by furious users.
And, TikTok has been accused of copying Instagram after developers gave the booming app a surprise makeover.
What's your go to music app? Let us know in the comments...
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