Pandora unveils new mobile redesign
Through P andora 4.0, users can make a detailed personal music profile and share their favorite songs with friends. The company claims that this is the first time a uniform interface exists across both iOS and Android smartphone platforms.
?The core is recognizing that the majority of our listenership is on mobile devices at this point,? said Simon Fleming-Wood, chief marketing officer of Pandora, Oakland, CA.
? Much of the functionality of the Pandora experience has yet to make it to mobile and now we?re making the entirety of the Pandora experience available to our users for the first time,? he said.
?The core listening experience centers around functionality.?
Complete overhaul
The new redesign now features an expanded listening functionality that lets listeners add variety, shuffle specific stations, rename stations and view station details.
Listeners can also check out artist pages to explore and learn more about their favorite singers, including album and track information, as well as artist biographies, album discographies and lyrics.
Additionally, the redesign lets users make a personal music profile that captures their personal musical preferences such as stations created, bookmarked tracks and thumb history and users can choose to share their profile or keep it private.
There is also a music feed feature that offers listeners a centralized place for to find and follow friends and explore what others with similar musical tastes are discovering.
Pandora and mobile
Pandora now sees more than 75 percent of total listening taking place on mobile
and other connected devices, proving that users are increasingly relying on
their mobile for everything.
In order to help listeners better discover and take advantage of the new features of Pandora 4.0, the company has partnered with four major advertisers to sponsor tips and information within the app.
The exclusive launch partner lineup features McDonald's, Nike, Sony Pictures and State Farm.
Additionally, each of the brands will also launch mobile campaigns that will appear in highlighted new social features of Pandora 4.0 in the coming weeks.
Furthermore, Microsoft has announced that Pandora is coming to Windows Phone in early the first quarter of 2013 with one year of ad-free music.
?Mobile is critical to Pandora,? Mr. Fleming-Wood said. ?But also, Pandora is important to mobile.
?Significantly over one-third of smartphones are using Pandora on a monthly basis now,? he said. ?The penetration of use is significant.?
Final Take