Technology continues to advance at breakneck speeds and ideas that were inconceivable just one generation ago are now generated so rapidly that many good ones are lost in the noise, never to see the light of day.
Not so with a recent mobile application for the iOS operating system that supplies what may be the ultimate way for retailers to pipe music into their stores.
The app is called StorePlay and is the brainchild of Melbourne DJ Dean Cherney. He already had a major foothold in the music for retailers market thanks to his earlier venture, Marketing Melodies, which has a nearly 20 year history.
What makes StorePlay unique is its use of ubiquitous iOS devices, including phones and tablets, to provide continuously updated music playlists to stores. Since being launched in December of 2012, many major Australian retailers have jumped on board, including Virgin Mobile and Palace Cinemas.
Hardware requirements are minimal and in most cases, the same equipment that was used to supply stores with music is already in place. Any store, or for that matter, any store employee, with an iOS device, a Wi-Fi connection and a music system can deploy StorePlay in a matter of minutes.
Cherney deserves credit for doing most of the heavy lifting on securing licensing agreements with the major and independent record labels, so users of StorePlay have no issues regarding legal rights.
Retailers interested in signing on for StorePlay log onto the website, select their playlists, and then download the app form the iTunes store. Since many people have used their iOS devices for similar functions many times, the learning curve is virtually nil.
One of the key features of Cherney’s service is that subscribers receive three hours of new music every month. Anyone who has worked in retail for any length of time will appreciate this feature to an almost indescribable degree.