CREDIT: NICK REYNO
Spotify is one of a handful of music-streaming services at consumers' finger tips, along with Rdio, Songza, Pandora and TIDAL.

As the music industry crawls into the digital age, decades behind the rest of the world, we continue to find new ways of listening to music. Whether it’s been pirated, burned, downloaded or shared, people are listening to music now more than ever.

The newest trend in music listening is a streaming format modeled after Netflix. There are already several big names in the business such as: Spotify, Rdio, Songza, Pandora and newcomer TIDAL.

Streaming has become a popular method of listening to songs due to an overwhelming library of free content that pays artists royalty fees. Sure, you could burn that latest album, but don’t you want the artist to make another one? It doesn’t cost you anything to stream songs, so why shouldn’t everyone benefit?

Currently dominating the market is Spotify, which has drawn users not only for its free access to over 30 million songs, but for convenient mood, genre and event-based playlists. Whether you’re making dinner or need a pick-me-up, Spotify has dozens of company- and user-created playlists for nearly any moment.

The only pitfall to this free streaming service are the ads that pop up once or twice in about 10 songs, which is a small price to pay for easy access to all your favourite bands.

TIDAL is the newest heavy hitter in streaming apps. The service is based on the presumption that consumers are willing to pay $10 to $20 a month for a higher quality sound, but unfortunately didn’t take into account that rampant pirating has exponentially lowered expectations for song quality.

Although TIDAL is trying to connect with indie artists and every day consumers, it has been branding itself with big name artists like Kanye West and Madonna, making it to be widely regarded as a greedy business venture by musicians who are already making a considerable amount of money. Crowdfunding websites have shown time and time again that the public would much rather give its money to local indie artists than to big-name pop stars.

The final streaming website you should keep an eye on is Apple’s reboot of Beats Music. The company recently acquired Beats and is preparing to roll out a worthy rival to Spotify and TIDAL. The new venture has been shrouded in mystery as rumours and speculations fly. While some sources claim there will be room for user created content, others are reporting on Apple’s aggressive tactics for exclusive content. A full launch of the product is expected in June, after being pushed back from its May launch date. As with everything Apple does, there will be no firm details about the service leading up to launch day.

Until Apple enters the market, the crown of music streaming will inevitably remain with Spotify. Its freemium business model has made them both a heavyweight and a household name, but if you’re interested in the controversy over TIDAL, it does offer a free one-month trial period.