Starbucks knows how to keep up with the ways of our generation.
The company, which once used to be a leading music outlet as it sold CDs of new artists, has now teamed up with Spotify in a multiyear deal, according to the NY Times.
Spotify will reportedly be producing playlists for its stores while being able to promote its music streaming services at the more than 7,000 coffee shops in the United States.
“By connecting Spotify’s world-class streaming platform into our world-class store and digital ecosystem, we are reinventing the way our millions of global customers discover music,” Starbucks chairman and chief executive Howard Schultz said in a statement.
Starbucks had stopped selling CDs in March after 20 years, according to Bloomberg Business. Starbucks’ partnership with Spotify will reportedly allow customers to give feedback on the songs played at their local Starbucks.
Users of the Spotify and Starbucks apps will reportedly have access to playlists created by the company’s baristas as well, giving more power to the people to pick and choose what music they listen to at their coffee shops.
“We’re really making the baristas the D.J.,” Daniel Ek, chief executive officer of Spotify, said on a conference call.
The partnership would reportedly begin at Starbucks stores in the fall. As the program begins, Starbucks employees will reportedly be getting complimentary subscriptions to Spotify’s premium service.
The deal is a positive one for Spotify. The music streaming service may have to deal with competition as Apple has reportedly announced that it would be introducing its own streaming music service in the near future.
“For many, many years, music has been a very significant part of the Starbucks experience,” Schultz stated.
“The music in our stores gave us license over the years to be in the physical CD business and as many of you know that turned into a very, big and important business for Starbucks.”
