Ford has announced a partnership with the digital music streaming company Spotify to bring block-rocking beats into the cockpit of any Ford Sync AppLink-equipped car.
Announced at Mobile World Congress 2013, the system will allow Spotify members to play tracks over the car’s speakers, and to control the app via voice commands rather than the touch screen.
Voice-activated commands allow you to fast-forward, rewind, play and pause, star or un-star songs and add music to a ‘Roadtrip Playlist’. You can even say ‘similar music’ to hear music that Spotify deems, well, similar. Spotify for Ford Sync Applink will read out relevant track information such as the title or artist currently playing.
Spotify for Ford Sync Applink isn’t quite as useful, in some respects, as the mobile or desktop versions of the software. You won’t be able to instantly share a song or album you have just heard with friends while driving. However an audible warning will let you know if a music-savvy friend has shared a playlist with you before asking whether you want it to be played there and then.
Spotify for Ford Sync AppLink will only work if you have a paid subscription to Spotify Premium, which means you will need to shell out £9.99 every month for the privilege. That may seem pricey but being able to stream more than 20 million tracks is impressive given that a physical album still sets you back the best part of a tenner, and digital music takes up no room in your glove box.
Speaking at the launch of the event, Ford CTO Paul Mascarenas said: “Spotify is a terrific addition to the Sync AppLink ecosystem helping add even more value to the experience of driving a Ford for both new and existing customers.”
Ford and Spotify’s partnership is not exclusive so we may well be hearing from other car manufacturers in the near future. No doubt other music services, such as Xbox Music, Rdio and Pandora, will also follow suit with their own driving-friendly offerings.
If you lack a Spotify Premium subscription or a relatively new Ford Fiesta or Ford Focus, you could just stream Spotify on your smartphone and connect your phone via Aux or Bluetooth assuming you’ve had enough of CDs.
Source and image: Tech Hive
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