Anyone know why Naim Record's albums have been withdrawn from Qobuz?

Posted by: SongStream on 20 August 2016

Yep, they've all gone. Can't listen to them, can't buy them either. What's the idea there? I know there is a tie in with Tidal in terms of integration, but why cut off another potential market place from discovering some pretty good stuff? Certainly some of the albums I now own would never have been discovered had they not been found and auditioned through Qobuz. Seems an odd move to me. I am aware that some other artists, and some labels, have pulled their offerings from Qobuz, and in some cases all non-Tidal streaming services, but this is the first time that something I might actually miss has disappeared.

Posted on: 21 August 2016 by Bert Schurink

My guess is - wild guess is that it has to do with the pricing policy of Qobuz. If you have Qobuz sublime the pricing is by far the cheapest legit site on the market. Recently I also start missing Act Music albums from Qobuz, which I find a big pity. But it's also clear I got albums on Qobuz from Act for 9.95 and on high res audio I need to pay 15.00...... So make the math and see what impact it has on the competition. A label has to see if it wants to be represented for those prices. Even Though ECM is always 1 euro cheaper on Qobuz....

Posted on: 21 August 2016 by hungryhalibut

It's this sort of hanky panky that makes it unwise to rely on any streaming service for all your music. If you want it, buy it.

Posted on: 21 August 2016 by SongStream

Bert Schurink posted:
My guess is - wild guess is that it has to do with the pricing policy of Qobuz. If you have Qobuz sublime the pricing is by far the cheapest legit site on the market. Recently I also start missing Act Music albums from Qobuz, which I find a big pity. But it's also clear I got albums on Qobuz from Act for 9.95 and on high res audio I need to pay 15.00...... So make the math and see what impact it has on the competition. A label has to see if it wants to be represented for those prices. Even Though ECM is always 1 euro cheaper on Qobuz....

Could be that. It just seems an illogical move on the whole. I agree that with the sublime subsription, which I also have, hi-res albums seem like an absolute steal comparatively speaking. However, not all high-res material is discounted, I would have thought a label could negotiate on that one. I think it's the removal from the streaming service that puzzles me more. If I know I want an album, I'll buy it from wherever I guess, but I can't have a whole bunch of monthly subscriptions with different services to aid in discovery. I suspect that Tidal must pay significantly more in streaming royalties too. Even though Linn have integrated with Qobuz, nothing from their label can be streamed on Qobuz either, which is a shame, yet I believe it is all on Tidal.