Microsoft’s Groove Music service seems to have been put on a life support system given that the iOS and Android apps for the service has been relegated to history. In other words, the app is not available to download on either of the platforms with immediate effect, or from June 1 to be specific.
However, existing users of the app do have time until December 1 to continue listening to the songs they have stored on OneDrive. After that, the songs will continue to be hosted on the user’s cloud storage account though users will need a different player software to listen to those.
The Groove Music app meanwhile exists for the PC, Xbox and Windows Phone. The latter, however, is again not a viable option given that the platform itself is virtually non-existent. Microsoft meanwhile is also suggesting switching over to rival software solutions such as the Google Play Music or iMusic. That is fine so far as business goodwill is concerned though seasoned users of the app will surely miss the controls and album art that they had becomes so used to on Groove.
That said, the latest development with Groove shouldn’t come as a surprise given that Microsoft had already opted out of the music streaming business back in December 2017 itself. The best the app was able to do was function as a media layer of sorts though users didn’t have the option to download any music.
The app was also integrated with Cortana so that the smart digital assistant too acquired the ability to identify music and such. That too has been a part of history which is as per Microsoft’s current plans, that of having zero existence in the streaming business. All such efforts also went together with Microsoft getting close with Spotify. That no doubt makes for a smart decision given this would spare Microsoft from reinventing the wheel and instead, can make the most of a proven and successful formula in the form of Spotify.
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That also is the reason many have been skeptical of Microsoft’s long-term plans with Groove. And what seems almost a certainty is that the app would cease to exist as a whole. As an alternative, users might be suggested jumping on to the Spotify bandwagon. That’s speculation no doubt but one that does hold some water.
