Published 17:57 IST, September 19th 2019
Apple Music now available on all Amazon Alexa devices in India
To access Apple Music on Alexa devices, users will need to add the service from the add new music source option in the Alexa app on a smartphone or a tablet.
Apple Music is now available for playback on all Amazon Alexa devices in India. This means users of all Amazon Echo devices such as Echo Dot, Echo Show 5, Echo, Echo Spot, Echo Plus, Echo Show, and Echo Input, as well as third-party Alexa-powered speakers can now access Apple Music via simple voice commands with Alexa. Note that the support does not include Apple Music playback on smartphones and tablets via the Amazon Alexa app.
To access Apple Music on Alexa devices, users will need to add the service from the add new music source option in the Alexa app on a smartphone or a tablet. Users will also be able to opt for Apple Music as their default music service – or not. Once enabled, users simply need to ask Alexa to play music from Apple Music and Amazon’s voice assistant will handle the rest.
Users will now have an option to play music from Apple Music, in addition to the existing JioSaavn, TuneIn Radio and of course Amazon Music services.
Support for Apple Music comes days after Amazon and Google announced the arrival of the official YouTube app on the Fire TV Stick and Fire TV Stick 4K. The feud between Google and Amazon had kept the native YouTube app off Amazon’s Fire TV devices for well over a year. Additional support for YouTube TV and YouTube Kids will be coming to these devices later this year. Being an official app means, users can access Alexa from within the app itself, to "find, launch, and control content (pause, play, rewind, fast-forward) using their voice."
The arrival of Apple Music on Alexa devices is also one of those rare happenings where companies like Apple (and even Amazon) known for their closed-door services approach are finally opening to partnering with others so their services could be made available on more devices – thus also increasing their subscriber base in the process.
Updated 18:16 IST, September 19th 2019