Table Of Content
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slacker.com
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Impactful Acquisition
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History
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Why should you stream on Slacker Radio?
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Live streaming prowess
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Platform engagement
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Vast content library
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Sublime audio quality
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Design
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Header
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Hero Section
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Body
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Footer
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Content
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Desktop/Mobile experience
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Plans & Pricing
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Suggestions I have for Slacker Radio
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Conclusion
slacker.com
Slacker Radio is one of the most popular streaming music services on the internet. Over the years, it has continued its dominance as one of the most innovative streaming services. With the rise of Spotify, Tidal, Pandora and Apple Music, Slacker keeps up with the competition by constantly evolving its platform to maintain its supremacy. Credibly curated stations and regular updates ensure that Slacker Radio remains an excellent choice for streaming music.
Impactful Acquisition
The rise of Slacker Radio and its contribution to the streaming industry attracted a lot of attention. This exposure led to LiveXLive - a live music streaming company acquiring Slacker Radio. Since the acquisition, LiveXLive has kept the parent name and Slacker is presented as "LiveXLive powered by Slacker"
In recent times, LiveXLive has been the site of some impressive streaming coverage including exclusive performances by artists such as ?Chance The Rapper?, ?Rihanna?, ?Radiohead?, ?Katy Perry? and ?Bruce Springsteen.? With the acquisition of Slacker Radio, not only is LiveXLive benefiting from Slacker's existing fanbase but it's tapping into a whole new competitive music streaming market.
History
Slacker Radio was founded by Celite Milbrandt and Dennis Mudd in 2004. In 2007, they entered into an agreement with four major labels- EMI, Universal, Sony BMG Music Entertainment and Warner. Apart from these major deals, the platform also announced its collaboration with thousands of other indie labels.
Why should you stream on Slacker Radio?
With the acquisition of Slacker Radio, almost all of its features have been retained. This means that you can enjoy hundreds of hand-crafted music stations with personalized recommendations. You can discover new favorites and even interact with the community.
Live streaming prowess
Slacker Radio was a gigantic network with its own app presence on Android and iOS platforms. However, when you club Slacker with LiveXLive, you get the best of both worlds. For instance, you can watch live video streams of concerts and major festivals happening around the world through the LiveXLive app.
Platform engagement
Personally, I enjoy the engagement part of any live stream. Slacker Radio takes this to a whole new level. Using the website or the app, you can create your own stations and playlist - share them with your network and even engage in a live stream with creators. Since the channel has exclusive hosted audio and video shows, you can become a part of the experience. If you are a sport or news lover, you'll surely enjoy the interactive programming format.
Vast content library
Since LiveXLive is powered by Slacker, you have access to millions of songs and albums on-demand. If you subscribe to the premium plan, not only do you get features such as Ad-free listening, 320kbps quality, unlimited skips, but you also get offline-listening features. If you opt for a premium feature (the pricing section), you can create your own playlists and stations.
Sublime audio quality
If there is one particular feature that made Slacker Radio standout from the rest of the streaming services, it would certainly be the audio quality. Sure, you cannot record music as you can with SiriusXM Internet Radio, but the quality on offer is just too amazing. Well-curated playlist and top-quality sound are all you look for in a perfect app apart from its interface and I can admit that LiveXLive made a statement by acquiring Slacker.
Design
To clarify, I will be discussing the LiveXLive platform, which is the present incarnation of Slacker Radio. After the acquisition, it was integrated into the LiveXLive platform and has thus lost its independent presence.
If you have not yet acquired Slacker Radio, you would likely search for the term "Slacker" or "Slacker Radio." Upon doing so, you will find the LiveXLive button with "Slacker" appearing as metadata. If you click on it, you will be redirected to their website with the URL specifying the link as "Slacker Redirect."
Header
Before we even see the header section, there is a leaderboard plug to its premium service - a massive turn off. I don't expect any premium services to blatantly pluck their services right above the header, since it's quite unappealing from a user-experience perspective. Under the banner, you would find three options - Live Events, Video, and My Library. Towards the left side of the button is a drop-down menu with four options - "The Daily?", "Shop?", "More?", and "Feedback?" The drop-down menu has a fifth option - "Log In."
Hero Section
However, this section is lacking in quality content.
There isn't much to talk about in the hero section of the redirected link. The headline reads ?Taking Your Music on the Road? and it has automobile powerhouses such as Tesla, Acura, FCA, Honda, Ford, Lexus and Subaru among many others listed as Integrated Partners. However, this section is lacking in quality content.
Body
As you move towards the body section, you get another premium banner plug with a CTA that reads "View Our Plans?" Beneath the banner are a newsletter sign-up section and the mobile app plug on the right.
Footer
You can also find a ?Share? button to post on other social media platforms. In addition, you can find a ?Download? button to download the app.
You will find six options in the footer section- "Get The App?", "Subscribe?", "Support?", "Contact?", "Terms?" and "Privacy?" These options contain social media buttons such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram. You can also find a share button to post on other social media platforms. Additionally, you can find a download button to download the app.
Content
Slacker offers a complete music experience. With customizable stations and recently played stations, finding your favorite songs has never been easy. You can choose from a wide range of genres, including Hip Hop/R&B, Pop, EDM/Dance, Rock, Country, and Metal. In its deep catalog you can find platinum albums such as Taylor Swift's Reputation and Prince's library.
Apart from music, Slacker Radio has a massive news and sports catalog. With exclusive ABC News content, you get much more than ESPN Radio - which is no longer part of the platform. In addition, you can also watch Star Wars Stories, Bill Murray Stories, and other pop culture stories.
The Slacker Radio app has received only minor changes, with the same panel-driven interface that offers amazing functionality. Today on Slacker, you'll find the main content area where you'll find the best tunes from Slacker Radio DJs. Apart from that, you can explore new music using the recommendation section. Some of the many recommended channels that caught my attention include Spotlight: Modern Jazz and 70s Rock.
Desktop/Mobile experience
I tested Slacker Radio in 2016 and 2017. At that time, it was way ahead of its time. Recently, however, LiveXLive took over the platform and ruined it. Sure, there's branding and a new visual approach but the streaming remains crisp and clear. Audios are hiccup-free and have great sound quality. Thus, I appreciate LiveXLive's approach here for capitalizing on Slacker's strength.
Plans & Pricing
Slacker initially offered its independent app and website. However, since the LiveXLive takeover, Slacker now has three-tier pricing - Basic, Plus, and Premium. The Basic plan costs $3.99 whereas the Plus plan is priced at $9.99. The difference between the basic and premium pricing is that you get No Ads, Unlimited Skips, Maximum Audio Quality, Offline Access and Play on-demand feature with a one-time payment of $9.99. If you opt for a Premium plan, you get all these features except offline and Play on-demand with no monthly fee.
Suggestions I have for Slacker Radio
Though I am not sour with the takeover of LiveXLive by Slacker, I would like to suggest the developers work on the pricing. There is no Family Plan as offered by major music streaming services such as Spotify, Deezer, Apple Music, YouTube Music, and Tidal. If LiveXLive wants to attract the audience, they need to throw in an affordable family plan for its users.
Conclusion
Slacker Radio has always offered high-quality audio streaming service and deep customization options. However, after the acquisition, it has been able to spread its operation and is now catering to more than just radio streaming under the LiveXLive banner.
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