Every now and then, on Facebook, someone shares a song or album from Spotify. Not having a subscription, I can’t play the music. However, if I click the Play button, I can hear 30-second previews of the songs. If I were a Spotify user, I could listen to the music in its entirety, and even add it to my library. Here’s one such widget I saw today:
Apple Music needs one of these. I suspect Apple hasn’t yet introduced it because there aren’t enough Apple Music users, but this is a way to get people to notice Apple Music. Because I don’t see anything about Apple Music on Facebook; I only see the occasional mention of Apple Music on Twitter.
If I share an album from Apple Music to Facebook, here’s what I see: just a cover, and a link, but nothing to allow me to play it or preview it on the web.
Of course, part of the reason for this is because Spotify has a web player and Apple Music doesn’t. You can only play Apple Music in iTunes (or on an iOS device). Perhaps Apple needs to make a web player, or at least a web preview tool, so they can have a widget where users can share music, and others can discover it. Until then, Apple Music seems distant, like it takes too many steps to get to.
To be fair, I rarely see the Spotify widget, and I hardly ever see links or mentions to music from other streaming services. But having a web widget would also allow people to embed music on websites, increasing exposure.
Update: A Twitter follower pointed out that Apple has a playlist widget, but 1) it’s only for playlists, and 2) it’s not available from the Share button in iTunes or in the iOS Music app. I have a feeling it’s designed for artists and labels to use on their websites, or in Apple Music Connect. The header at the top of the page says MARKETING TOOLS.