Microsoft, apparently, once had their own music streaming service called Groove Music Pass. In addition to its embarrassingly misguided name, Groove Music Pass never released user numbers to the public. On a planet of billions, we can assume those numbers weren't exactly impressive numbers, making Microsoft's announcement Monday that it would be discontinuing all Groove grooving later this year not much of a shock.
"As we continue to listen to what our customers want in their music experience we know that access to the best streaming service, the largest catalog of music, and a variety of subscriptions is top of the list," Microsoft Groove GM said in a press release Monday. "Which is why we're excited to announce that we're expanding our partnership with Spotify to bring the world's largest music streaming service to our Groove Music Pass customers. Beginning this week, Groove Music Pass customers can easily move all their curated playlists and collections directly into Spotify."
Microsoft will continue to update Groove, which first started as Xbox Music, for previously owned music, but streaming/purchasing/downloading options will be halted Dec. 31. Certain Groove users will be eligible for a 60-day trial of Spotify Premium.
For Groove users looking to transfer music collections and playlists over to Spotify, simply open an updated version of the Groove app and click the Spotify pop-up window. Users will then be prompted to either log in to an existing Spotify account or create a new one. Qualifying music will then be moved over to the user's Spotify account, at which point it is advised that you hold a moment of silence for Groove Music Pass.
The competition among streaming services, the undeniable go-to source for the majority of listeners' music needs, has exploded in recent years. As of July, Mashablereports, Spotify (at more than 60 million) still boasts a higher subscriber base than the growing Apple Music (30 million).
