It’s the product of a partnership between Sony and Spotify, bringing the latter’s library of more than 30 million songs to a range of devices. The spring launch kicks off in 41 markets around the globe, including the U.S. and Canada; Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and elsewhere in Central/South America; and a large chunk of Europe. Supported devices at launch include PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, and Xperia phones/tablets, though it wouldn’t be a surprise to see others (say, PlayStation Vita) added at a later date.
PlayStation Music users will be able to link their Spotify and PlayStation Network accounts, access playlists or create new ones, and listen to music from Spotify’s library. Console users also have the ability to play music from the app alongside their games. It’s not clear how Spotify Premium features factor into the app, but a linked account makes it possible to pay for the service using your Sony Wallet.
The coming of PlayStation Music foretells the end of Music Unlimited, which was integrated into the PS4 at launch in late 2013. The service will shut down in all 19 of the markets that it’s currently available in on March 29, 2015, and “most” of those countries are among the launch markets for PlayStation Music (sorry Japan!).
The announcement doesn’t explain why Japan isn’t among the launch markets, but the answer is plain enough: There’s no Spotify in Japan (yet). Sony appears to have a plan for delivering some manner of music service to its users in Japan, based on this footnote from the press release: “The PS Music service in Japan is not yet determined. Further details will be announced when ready.”
