iHeartRadio Takes On Songza With Thousands Of “Perfect For” Streams
This morning Clear Channel announced a new iHeartRadio music streaming service called
“Perfect For.” In addition to 1,500 live stations and Pandora like user-created streams, listeners can now use
“Perfect For” to browse a menu of streams by moods and activities customised for a particular day and time.
iHeartRadio vs. Songza
Mood and location based playlists have helped Amazon backed startup Songza grab a strong audience. Now iHeartRadio is offering thousands of alternatives in a dashboard that includes both 1500 Clear Channel stations and unlimited Pandora-like custom streams. But unlike Songza's dozens of hand curated playlists, iHeartRadio's "Perfect For Streams" are are computer generated.
How It Works
Early
morning users might see stations that are perfect for waking up, running,
driving, getting ready for work or even ‘keeping the previous night
going’. Once the make a selection, they are presented with several
applicable genres or themes, each of which contains four station
suggestions. iHeartRadio’s stations catalog spans a variety of themes
including “Took My Wife, Took My Dog: Country's Greatest Break-up Music,” “Full
House: Gambling with Beats,” “Skinny Jeans: Boys with Guitars,” “Ambien-T:
Ambient Music, Prescription Strength” and many more. “Perfect For” will
also suggest live radio stations to users based off of the mood or activity
they select.
Launching today at 12 p.m. ET, “Perfect For” will initially
be available for iPhones and PCs, but users can save “Perfect For” stations on
these devices and access them via any device where iHeartRadio is available.
The feature will be available on other mobile and tablet devices soon, according to the company.
New Alarm Clock Feature
In addition to “Perfect For,” a
new alarm clock feature also announced today will allow users to wake
up to iHeartRadio and to set reminders. For example, fans of Z100’s
“Elvis Duran and the Morning Show” can set the app to turn on just as the show
begins or when they know a particular call-in contest is running. Alarm
clock will launch on iPhones and will be available on other devices soon.
