Apple’s Beats Music Redesign Reportedly “A Mess,” But Expect Lower Price, Deep iOS Integration

Apple's planned relaunch of its music service will look and feel very different than Beats Music does today, according to multiple sources. While taking advantage of Beats Music's technology and content, the new service, which is tapped for an early summer launch, is undergoing a complete and reportedly contentious redesigned by Apple.

"A Mess"

The new Beats will carry a lower price point, and be deeply integrated into Apple's operating system. But the redesign has apparently not been easy. “Beats integration is not going so well,” one source told 9To5Mac, who first broke the story. Another said the development process "has been a mess;” adding that Apple had put former Beats engineers in key roles which drew fire from some long-time Apple staffers. 

$7.99 A Month

Negotiations with the major labels, during which Apple reportedly pushed for a $5 price point, appear to have ended in a compromise likely to be $7.99 monthly, according to the same sources. That will put Apple's music service 20% lower than its competitors; though still without a free tier.

Key Beats Features Live On

Core Beats Music features like Playlists, Activities and Mixes will live on. The new music service will be heavily cloud-based, but centered around the user’s existing music library – perhaps an acknowledgement of the money users have spent downloading tracks on iTunes. Offline playback of select streaming songs be also enabled.

An Android App

Unlike current Apple music services like iTunes Radio, the new Beats will have be available to Android users via a new app, according to 9To5Mac.