Sony Music Entertainment Japan (SMEJ) is partnering with Rhapsody International to launch what is being slated as the first on-demand, high resolution music streaming service in Japan.
The new service is called Mora Qualitas, which will be powered by Rhapsody’s Napster platform – including its systems, tools and APIs.
Although SMEJ contributes to the overall Sony Corp music division, it is run separately from Sony Music Entertainment, which is headed up by CEO Rob Stringer in New York.
A subscription to Mora Qualitas will cost 1,980 Yen a month for lossless FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec) streaming at a standard of 24-bit/44.1-96khz (Hi-Resolution)/ 16-bit/44.1khz (CD quality).
Mora Qualitas is available for Windows and Macintosh desktop users initially, with other platforms to follow.
“We are committed to accelerating the growth of streaming on a global scale by helping new services like Mora Qualitas launch quickly as well as enhancing existing services.”
Brian Ringer, Rhapsody
“Our partnership with Sony Music Entertainment Japan offers the ultimate experience for audio enthusiasts in Japan as they no longer have to choose between a streaming service and high quality audio.
“With mora qualitas, fans can now have both for the very first time,” said Brian Ringer, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Asia Pacific Region of Rhapsody.
“We are committed to accelerating the growth of streaming on a global scale by helping new services like Mora Qualitas launch quickly as well as enhancing existing services.”
“Napster’s deep expertise in high resolution audio streaming and industry experience made them the clear choice to partner with us in launching Japan’s new premier service.”
Shigeki Tanaka, Sony Music Entertainment Japan
Shigeki Tanaka, Senior Vice President of Sony Music Entertainment Japan, added: “There is a lot of momentum happening in streaming and it’s going to keep getting better for consumers and artists with the introduction of mora qualitas, our new global on-demand audio service.
“Napster’s deep expertise in high resolution audio streaming and industry experience made them the clear choice to partner with us in launching Japan’s new premier service.”
The launch of Mora Qualitas comes two years after Spotify arrived in Japan, back in September 2016.
In the first full calendar year after Spotify launched in Japan, 2017, the market’s subscription streaming music revenues only grew by $40m year-on-year.Music Business Worldwide
