Why Apple’s streaming music service has reportedly been delayed

By Benjamin SnyderManaging Editor
Benjamin SnyderManaging Editor

Benjamin Snyder is Fortune's managing editor, leading operations for the newsroom.

Prior to rejoining Fortune, he was a managing editor at Business Insider and has worked as an editor for Bloomberg, LinkedIn and CNBC, covering leadership stories, sports business, careers and business news. He started his career as a breaking news reporter at Fortune in 2014.

Apple und Beats-Kopfhörer
ARCHIV - ILLUSTRATION - «Monster»-Kopfhörer der Marke Beats liegen am 09.05.2014 in Bamberg (Bayern) auf einem Apple iPad Mini. Apple kauft für insgesamt drei Milliarden Dollar den Kopfhörer-Hersteller Beats. Photo by: David Ebener/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images
Photograph by David Ebener — picture-alliance/dpa/AP

The future of Beats’ streaming music service has been in question since Apple bought the company for $3 billion last year. A revamped and rebranded version was expect this spring. But, according to 9to5Mac’s Mark Gurman, the service may only become available in June.

Apple is holding a “Spring Forward” event on Monday, March 9, at which it is expected to give more details about its upcoming Apple Watch. Gurman attributes delays in the music service to the departure of some key Apple employees, including Beats’ Bobby Gaza. Apple is also reportedly making the service compatible with Android devices, another possible reason for the wait.

The next major event at which Apple might unveil the service is its Worldwide Developers Conference in June.

The new service comes at a pivotal time in the music industry. Artists have increasingly been critical of streaming heavyweight Spotify even as record sales (aside from a certain artist) continue to plummet. Apple, which has more clout with many artists, could upend the market if it finds the right business model for streaming.

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