One of the forgotten players in the online music streaming battle is Guvera. While Spotify has all the brandshare and Rdio is winning fans over with its excellent user experience, Guvera has been quietly looking to create a foothold in the Australian market.
That beachhead has arrived in the form of a partnership with Lenovo, marketers of PCs, tablets and smartphones, through both its eponymous brand and the Motorola business it recently acquired from Google.
“The deal will see Guvera’s music streaming service pre-installed onto Lenovo mobile devices, including tablets and smartphones, making the local business a truly international player in the digital music streaming industry,” said a Guvera spokesperson.
“In Australia, Guvera offers unlimited music streaming via its app on Android and iOS mobile and tablet devices, as well as on the web.”
What is the difference between Guvera and the myriad other services? We asked its media reps to answer this question and they dutifully provided an answer:
Guvera is Australian-owned and operated and supports Australian artists and the local music industry. The partnership with Music Feeds enables users to access relevant local music news and information on upcoming concerts, festivals and events. There are rewards for top users each month, with special offers as well as opportunities to win money-can’t-buy experiences from music label partners.
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Guvera claims to have 750,000 members in Australia, though this does not mean it has 750,000 paid subscribers, as basic membership is free. Premium membership, which costs $11.99 per month, gives listeners an unlimited, ad free, web and mobile listening experience.
It is not clear whether Lenovo and Guvera plan on including a free period of premium membership with this pre-installation.
Opinion/Analysis
I have been a paid up subscriber to Rdio for several years now and it has been a very rewarding, enjoyable experience. Why did I choose Rdio? Because their PR reps in Australia gave me a free subscription. When that trial expired after three months, I was so addicted to the unlimited ad-free playback of ~18 million songs at my fingertips that I could never go back to an ad-supported service or labouriously transferring song from my PC to my iPhone.
This deal will put Guvera in the hands of a lot of consumers that (a) don’t know it exists and (b) are unaware music streaming services exist (despite being competitive, music streaming is still relatively immature in Australia). This exposure could lead to a lot of new business for Guvera, while Lenovo gets another service provider logo to pin on its merchandising. This looks like a win-win for all concerned.