Now that Jay-Z’s name and fame has given CD-quality streaming service Tidal a much needed boost in recognition, Sonos is quick to pick up on the action, too. The wireless speaker maker just announced a new partnership which will allow Sonos users to access their Tidal account directly through their speakers. Jay-Z acquired Tidal earlier this month for $56 million and has since garnered the public (Twitter) support of Kanye West, Rihanna, Madonna and Jay-Z’s gal, Beyonce.
Adding Tidal support on the Sonos Wireless HiFi system is almost inevitable as both products cater to the music listeners for whom quality is a top priortiy. Tidal boasts lossless, high fidelity quality tracks for streaming. Sonos is a veteran player in the high resolution speaker game with its ability to stream audio files up to 16 bit / 44.1 kHZ. With this new partnership, Sonos speakers add Tidal to an already long list of currently-supported streaming services, including Deezer (another hi-def streaming option), Spotify, Pandora and others.
High-quality digital music delivery is of rapidly growing interest (see also: Neil Young’s Pono player, Sony’s NWZ-A17SLV, Deezer Elite) and Sonos explains that they’re collaborating with the service so listeners are ‘more clearly able to hear the artist’s intent’ (via a press release). “Artists are more in tune than ever with how people are listening to their music,” said Sonos CEO, John MacFarlane. “The game just changed — Tidal represents the future of music.”
Major pop artists see Tidal’s value — including Taylor Swift, who pulled her music from Spotify, later calling the rival service “a grand experiment.” With enough of these celebrity partnerships, perhaps Tidal will be able to have a significant impact in the streaming music space. Although, considering its $20/£20 per month price point (for the uncompressed streaming option, a $10/£10 option for standard streaming quality is also available), the service faces an uphill battle. At the very least, Sonos users now have another option for subscription hi-def music streaming.
