Apple drops the Beats: is the end of the headphone brand approaching?
Rumors have been circulating for months that Apple will retire its headphone brand Beats. A new announcement now fires up these rumors again.
The current rumors about the end of Beats started at the beginning of April with the tweets of the leaker Jon Prosser. At that time he predicted that Apple would say goodbye to the popular headphone brand. But the end of Beats would not come overnight, but only after Apple had made a name for itself with its own headphones around the well-known AirPods.
Seems like people need clarification on what I mean by “end goal is to phase out Beats”
— Jon Prosser (@jon_prosser) April 7, 2020
It doesn’t mean they’re trying to kill the Beats brand TOMORROW.
They’re building up the Apple/AirPods product line - THEN they will phase out Beats in favor of the finished lineup.
One of the first steps in this direction can now possibly be seen in yesterday's Apple Music announcement. In the past few hours, Apple has said goodbye to Beats 1, the iPhone manufacturer's streaming radio station launched in 2015. Beats 1 is now called Apple Music 1.
Apple Music 1 continues to be a live station that uses the old familiar voices to inform listeners about the world of music while playing the latest hits. The shows of music stars such as Billie Eilish, Elton John or The Weeknd are still part of programming. For the future, many other well-known musicians, including HAIM or Lady Gaga, have been won over for additional shows.
Apple Music: two new stations introduced
But the renaming of Beats 1 was only the beginning. Apple has also introduced two completely new stations that are intended to reach new audiences. Apple Music Hits wants to welcome the fans from the 80s, 90s, and 2000s with their songs. There are also new shows, which are presented by well-known voices. Among the artists are Alanis Morissette, Snoop Dogg, or the Backstreet Boys.
The second new station, Apple Music Country, is aimed – as the name suggests – at fans of country music. Here, Apple follows a similar program in the form of exclusive shows with Luke Bryan, Luke Combs, or Carrie Underwood.
The brand Beats has apparently come to an end at least at Apple's radio station. The coming months and years will have to show what the future of the popular headphones looks like.
Source: Apple
