Simfy

The simfy AG operates a German music streaming portal through which you can listen to music online. In addition, the listening to music on an application for Apple Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows, the Simfy player, possible. For Linux, there is currently no player, but the possibility of using the browser / web page to listen to music. In the free access to use from the third month of membership of twenty is limited to five hours per calendar month, between the songs advertising is played and there are also regular 30 second forced breaks. Free Desktop users can only hear snippets of songs with a duration of 30 seconds from the second month. Furthermore, subject to some songs premium users, of these, one can only hear the first 30 seconds without premium access. With a premium account you can listen to music without restrictions and free of advertising. In addition Simfy offers an app for Apple iOS, Blackberry OS and Android for its premium users. The audio streams can be accessed with 192 kbit / s.

The songs come from Sony Music, Universal Music, Warner Music and EMI, as well as other smaller record labels. To listen to the songs of artists from Warner Music, the record company until its sale in May 2011 a premium account was required. Songs of Century Media Records are largely not represented ( exceptions are compilations ). Overall Simfy offers more than 20 million songs.

Since 23 August 2010, there are also the address simfy.ch specifically for users from Switzerland. In March 2011 Simfy officially launched in Austria. In November 2011 Simfy officially launched in Belgium.

History

Even before the re-launch of the music portal Simfy there was the page. Previously worked Simfy as a search engine and searching for the best music downloads on the Internet. 2008, there was a first relaunch. Now, users could upload their music and other users could listen to that, but not download. In May 2010, the operator launched another relaunch of the page with a capital of 7 million euros.

Since early October 2010 Simfy also cooperates with the radio portal Last.fm, so that users have the possibility to combine the music portfolio of both providers and to save that belonged in Simfy title in the user profile at last.fm.

In October 2010 it was announced that will merge with its competitor Simfy Steereo. This Steereo going on in Simfy. This done, because the negotiations with rights recyclers as GEMA be very time -consuming and costly.

On 29 November 2010 it was announced that Simfy would cooperate with the VZ-networks ( meinVZ, schülerVZ, StudiVZ ). This cooperation includes a student and the student rate, in the Simfy Premium can be used effectively.

Since early 2011, each Simfy users can use the Simfy player for free. In September 2011, the use was limited to 20 hours / account per month. This advertising in the form of banners and advertisements will be displayed. Premium users can remove the restrictions. For Premium Plus users in addition to Simfy player also apps for Apple iOS, Blackberry OS and Android are no restrictions available. Premium Plus users can save offline on mobile devices or the Simfy player playlists. In November 2011, the free use from the third month of membership was limited to five hours per account and month.

For its first birthday Simfy applied for over one million registered users and a monthly growth rate in the double-digit percentage range. In addition, the company received a funding infusion of ten million euros to strengthen its presence in the German-speaking world and to prepare an expansion in other European countries.

Starting from 2 May 2012 Songs for members of a free accounts after the second month only in a length of 30 seconds are listenable. In the first two months there is no limitation in this regard, the monthly limit is in the first two months continued at 20 hours.

End of April 2013, the headquarters of Cologne was moved to Berlin, in May, the company announced in the future to focus on the German market. All funding should now be around 30 million euros.

In July 2013 leaves with Gerrit Schumann, the third founder, the company. Alexander Herbst, who was chief financial officer of the company since 2012, is the new managing director.

Costs

The premium offer without restrictions costs 4.99 € per month, the Premium Plus account which also allows the online and offline listening to music through apps, it costs € 9.99 per month. For some time pre-paid premium accounts are also offered for six or twelve months, enabling a saving of approx 5 to 10 % on the monthly fee. A 12 month premium account amounts eg to 49.99 € per year, which equates to € 4.17 per month.

Web Services

Users have the opportunity to have their Simfy accounts to link with Simfy with their Facebook or Twitter profiles to recommend there songs or albums. In addition, it is possible to over pieces belonged to Last.fm to transfer the information and " scrobbling " on there too.

Simfy live

In addition to the streaming offering Simfy offered with simfy live in a catalog of concert recordings. The concert recordings could be as USB sticks ( " Concert Sticks " ) and purchased as a download. The service is set now.

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