Cooped up and stumped on what album to listen to next to pass the time? There's an app for that.
Now, more than ever, is the time to consider joining a music streaming service such as Spotify or one of its competitors. Over 300 million people worldwide have a paid music subscription.
Even if you have a massive record collection at home, there's a chance you'll be looking for something else to listen to by the time the coronavirus quarantine is over. Besides, you can't take your record collection outside for your daily walk, run or bike ride.
Convenience is the biggest reason to sign up for one of these services, which usually cost between $8 and $15 per month. Having more than 50 million songs at the tap of a phone screen (the number Spotify and Apple Music both claim) is as easy as it gets.
Discovering new music is another big plus. Most of these services have algorithm programs that point listeners to other artists and songs based on what you're already picking to play. Friends, experts and complete strangers can also point you to new grooves via the apps.
Of course, there are also downsides. Audio quality is diminished when it's streamed over the internet, though some of the services such as Amazon Music Unlimited now offer "HD" options for better sound at a higher monthly fee.
There's also the touchy subject of how little these companies pay artists and their record labels. On average, Spotify doles out between $0.006 and $0.0084 per stream, for instance; so maybe a whopping 80 cents goes to the artist if a thousand people stream a song one month. This pittance has many altruistic music fans swearing off paid subscriptions.
Patrick Werle, of Minneapolis, knows the arguments against Spotify, but he still pays for it — and then he buys downloads or physical albums on the artist-friendly site Bandcamp.com when he discovers new music he wants to own.
