Here's an interesting one. Spotify's had a music store in UK for ages now, first provided by 7Digital and then later its own, but now it's suddenly stopped letting people buy music from it. Is this permanent, and does anyone really care? Who actually buys stuff with a Spotify Premium account anyhow? Apparently Spotify's streamlining. [Spotify via Pocket-Lint] Read More >>

It's Christmas eve -- if you don't have everyone covered by Christmas presents yet, you're pretty screwed. Well, apart from these beauties that is. Here are your not-even-slightly-lame emergency Crimbo presents you can grab right now, instantly from your computer, and look like a legend come tomorrow morning. Read More >>

When Spotify launched four years ago in Sweden, it launched not as a direct competitor to massive musical monoliths like iTunes, but as a cheap, all-you-can-eat alternative to piracy. People who were previously cut off from music by the Man were re-introduced to their favourite songs on the cheap. Spotify found a way to compete with free by ingeniously appealing to music lover's morals. Now, someone else is using their killer feature, and giving it away for free. Meet the new MySpace. Read More >>

Today's Spotify event, billed as "Discover what's next," is not so subtly supposed to be about how Spotify is going to one up its competition by helping you find music better than anyone else. The service is adding a new "Discover" and "Follow" tabs to its player that not only gives you recommendations, but also better context for what you're about to listen to and why its being recommended. The features will roll out in the new year. Read More >>

Those of you who prefer the post-Beatles part of Macca's career but don't quite like it enough to pay for it are in luck, with the pensioner's tunes now back up on the online streaming radio sites after they were found to be missing earlier this year. Read More >>

If the best way to listen to music is to stream it these days, then Spotify has its finger on the pulse of what's hot and popping in music. And looking at the most popular Spotify songs of 2012, well, that must mean our collective music taste is terribly poppy and probably horrible. Here are the most popular songs on Spotify of 2012. Read More >>

If you've been looking for a way to stream Spotify tracks without having to use the standalone app, that day may come sooner than later: Spotify has confirmed with us that they have begun testing the feature with a small audience. Read More >>

The addition of iOS and Windows 8 apps, along with an expansion to a claimed 18 million tracks, makes rara.com look like a solid choice for a streaming subscription music service. However, in a highly competitive market with numerous rivals, Lifehacker talked to CEO Nick Massey to ask the obvious question: can anyone other than Spotify win in this market? Read More >>

We've known that Microsoft has been working on a music service for a while now, and we finally got a chance to check it out first hand. Xbox Music is exactly what you'd want in a streaming service and store. It's complete in a way that Spotify, Amazon, and even iTunes aren't. Microsoft's new music platform is wonderful, basically. Read More >>

After the success of the BBC iPlayer, giving licence-fee payers free access to the BBC's content online, the Beeb's trying to do the same but for streaming music. "Playlister" will apparently allow you to stream hundred of thousands of music tracks without having to pay a penny. Free streaming music? Yes please. Read More >>

Wondering why Spotify hasn't updated its desktop app? It looks like there's a completely overhauled browser-based version in the works. Along with the move to the web, a cheaper subscription may be a possibility, and sources reckon that there'll be more emphasis on tracking listening habits and discovering new music too. [TechCrunch] Read More >>

If you've wished you could just load Spotify up in a browser of your choice instead of messing with a dedicated player, you're in luck. TechCrunch has gotten word that Spotify is working on a brower-based player to augment the one it has now, or even replace it. Read More >>

Maybe the music industry isn't doomed after all, as research points to on-demand services like Spotify and We7 generating up to £696m for the global music industry this year alone, which is a complete rise of 40 per cent. Read More >>

If you've ever sat at your desk, contentedly listening to streaming music on your computer and thought, "Man, I wish this existed 25 years ago," stop. You don't. You really, really don't. Watch this video and recant. Read More >>

Radio is the latest addition to Spotify's iOS apps, which allows users to take the streaming music service's Pandora-like functionality on the go. But this isn't just for the people with premium accounts. Anyone can listen to Spotify radio on their iOS device for free. Read More >>