Remember the pre-release build-up that used to happen for big albums? All those weeks of hype and then the album was out and you actually knew it was out, because it was everywhere. Thanks to this wonderful world of streaming, that hype has all but disappeared, or focused on albums that are only available on certain services, as with the launch of Jay Z's recent-ish album 4:44.
Tidal, the site that had an exclusive free download of that Jay Z album, has introduced a new feature that it hopes will get us all back on the hype train, and that's a pre-save option for albums you really don't want to miss when they actually drop.
The feature is being rolled out to coincide with the launch of Deadmau5’s new album, and allows you to pre-save the album so that it's ready and waiting for you in your music collection when it's officially released.
Save for later
Not only is this convenient for the music fan, it's sure to go a long way to helping Tidal with the recommendations it serves up. You're only going to pre-save albums you really want to listen to, so it adds an extra slice of data to help them shape your music habits.
This is something that's been trialled on Spotify, but there it was done using the company's API, and not an official option. For the launch of Laura Marling’s fantastic Semper Femina in 2016, her record label created a workaround to allow fans to pre-save the album.
Apple Music also allows this, but it's tied to pre-release albums that have been purchased through iTunes.
Tidal has been busy of late with its new features. Recently it also announced that it has brought its high-res streaming service to both Amazon Fire TV and Android Auto.
Via The Verge
