Spotify are actually giving something back to their users after weeks of pillaging them. If you haven't noticed, the free account is now a piece of crap. We were happy to put up with advertisements with our free accounts, but now we have a bunch of aggravating restrictions such as a 10 hour listening cap and a new rule that says we can't listen to the same song more than 5 times which is annoying if you're like me and get so obsessed with songs you could easily get through it 5 listens a day. Reaction to Spotify's changes have been mixed. Many music lovers feel betrayed, some say stop moaning, it's still good free and if you're so bothered get premium. Though I can see both sides, I don't think that paying for streaming is healthy for the music industry but unfortunately it's the way things are going.
But back to the point, what are they giving us? An update to both its desktop and mobile software. What's exciting about this update? It enables Spotify to replace iTunes. The new desktop client will detect any iPod you have plugged into your computer and let you sync your local tracks with it. The service works with the iPhone, iPod Touch, the iPod Nano, Classic and Shuffle. Basically the ianything. But note this doesn't involve streaming from the internet but rather allows users to use Spotify to replace iTunes as music syncing software. As well as syncing 'local' tracks you will also be able to sync any tracks that you have bought in Spotify.
And here's where Apple really get a kick. IOS and Android users (free or premium) also get a rather nifty new feature: Wireless syncing. The new Spotify update will give users the ability to wirelessly sync music from their computer to a smartphone or iPod Touch. Can’t do that with iTunes can you.
At least Spotify are spending all their riches on improving their service but the more adventurous Spotify get the more pressure they'll be on free users to switch to premium.