Xbox Music Web Player Launches

Xbox Music has arrived on the web, with Microsoft launching the promised online music player today. Joining the existing Xbox Music apps for Windows Phone, Windows, and Xbox 360, the new web player supports synchronized playlists across each platform, with access for Xbox Music Pass subscribers and, albeit only for a 30 day trial, free listeners.

Xbox Music is Microsoft's answer to Spotify, providing streaming playback of tracks from a catalog of what the company vaguely says are "millions" of options. Launched in October 2012, the service was initially limited to Microsoft's own products, but last week the company confirmed that it would begin opening things up with a web-based interface.

Still expected, though with no idea of a timescale, are iOS and Android apps. Microsoft suggested back at launch that they were in the pipeline, though there's no roadmap for their release.

The new Xbox Music web player supports the same search functionality and music collection access as the native apps. There's support for existing playlists, as well as creating new playlists that can then be accessed on other devices.

Free users get advert-supported playback on Xbox Music in general, similar to Spotify, though only 30 days to test out the web player; after six months they are limited to ten hours of streaming each month on their Windows Phone 8, Windows PC, or Xbox. Xbox Music Pass subscribers, however, get unlimited, ad-free playback from the start.

VIA The Verge