Apple gives in, will allow Apple Music on Amazon Echo devices

• Starting sometime in the middle of December, you will be able to stream Apple Music through Amazon Echo devices.
• This means you'll no longer be limited to Apple's Homepod for voice assistant integration within a smart speaker.
• Apple is likely making this move to better compete with rival Spotify. Could Google Home hardware be next?

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If you are one of the 50 million people who subscribe to Apple Music, you likely have been a bit miffed that you've so far been limited to Apple's own Homepod for voice assistant integration within a smart speaker.

Well, at some point in December 2018, you'll have one other option: Amazon Echo devices (via Deadline).

Amazon and Apple recently signed a deal together which would allow Amazon to sell more Apple products. It's likely today's reveal of Apple Music and Echo devices playing nice together is a by-product of that deal.

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Apple's main rival in the music streaming space is Spotify, which has over 30 million more subscribers than Apple Music. People who use Spotify can stream the service through all the major smart speaker platforms, including Google Home hardware. In fact, if you subscribe to a Spotify family plan before the end of the year, Spotify will literally give you a Google Home Mini.

Apple knows that if it wants to truly compete with Spotify, it's going to need to broaden its horizons.

Does this mean Apple Music will eventually come to Google Home? It's too early to tell for now, but it's not completely out of the realm of possibility. If Apple starts to treat Apple Music as a standalone product and not something that is intrinsically linked to the Apple ecosystem, it would be crazy to not allow the service on as many platforms as possible.

However, this is Apple we're talking about, so who knows whether or not the company will expand to other smart speakers. For now, just look forward to sometime in the middle of December for Apple Music to work with your Echo gear.

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