Amazon beats Google and Apple to launching a cloud-based audio service

Seems like Amazon has been scoring a lot of headlines lately. After launching their own alternative to Google's Android Market, the online retailer has just deployed its very own cloud-based audio service. Amazon Cloud Drive will let users upload and store their audio collections while Amazon Cloud Player will take care of playing the music back on demand. We bet that Apple and Google are not too happy about all this since both companies are said to be working on identical projects.

The Amazon Cloud Player boasts the flexibility to run on any modern Mac or PC, as well as on Android-powered tablets and smartphones. Say goodbye to carrying your MP3-s around on flash drives when going to your buddy's party next time. Uploaded audio files are stored and streamed back with their original bitrate, so sound quality should not be a concern. Using the Amazon Cloud Drive provides 5 GB of storage at no charge, which can be upgraded to 20 GB for free when an MP3 album is purchased through Amazon. Available space can be expanded even further with a yearly subscription fee starting from $20 for 20 GB up to $1000 for 1000 GB.

We just have to note that Apple and Google will probably catch up soon. It is probably best to see what kind of prices and services they will offer before signing up for a paid subscription for Amazon's cloud. With that said, feel free to give Cloud Player's free version a try and let us know what your impressions are!

source: Amazon via Android Central