Apple Loses Music Executive
August 28 2015 - 12:10PM
Dow Jones News
Apple Inc. is losing one of the main executives behind its new
music service.
The company said Ian Rogers, one of the key executives retained
by Apple when it acquired Beats last year for $3.2 billion, has
resigned and is leaving the company. Mr. Rogers, a senior director,
is credited with the creation of Apple's Beats 1, the online radio
station developed as part of its new Apple Music initiative. He was
the chief executive of Beats Music at the time of the
acquisition.
A person familiar with the matter said Mr. Rogers is moving to
Europe to work for a company in an unrelated industry.
The departure, earlier reported by the Financial Times, is a
surprising development for Apple less than two months after its
high-profile launch of Apple Music—a streaming music service that
aims to compete with Spotify AB.
Apple Music has been dogged by complaints of clunky software.
However, Beats 1—which Mr. Rogers created with former BBC Radio 1
DJ Zane Lowe—has received praise.
Mr. Rogers, who used to head Yahoo Inc.'s music service, joined
Apple following the acquisition along with Jimmy Iovine, Dr. Dre
and Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor.
Apple introduced Apple Music on June 30, providing three months
of free access to users. Once the trial period ends, the service
will cost $9.99 a month for individuals and $14.99 for a family
plan of up to six people.
On Aug. 6, Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president overseeing
Apple Music, said 11 million people signed up for the trial period
in a little more than a month.
The first wave of subscribers is coming to the end of their
trial period at the end of September. It remains to be seen how
many will convert to paying customers.
Write to Daisuke Wakabayashi at Daisuke.Wakabayashi@wsj.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 28, 2015 11:55 ET (15:55 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2015 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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