Apple Music and TikTok have teamed up to test two new features to better connect music between the two platforms.
That’s according to Apple-focused news website 9to5Mac on Monday (February 16).
The companies are beta-testing a feature called “Play Full Song,” which would allow TikTok users to stream full songs through Apple Music without having to leave the app. The integration is based on Apple’s MusicKit framework, which lets third-party developers integrate Apple Music into their own apps.
The feature requires an active Apple Music subscription to access full songs through TikTok, the report said. The feature shows a “From Apple Music” label during playback, and Apple is responsible for royalty payments and licensing arrangements with record labels and artists.
The two companies are also reportedly testing a “Listening Party” feature that would allow groups of users to stream music at the same time within TikTok, creating a shared listening experience similar to the now-defunct Turntable.fm service.
Both features have yet to launch publicly, according to 9to5Mac.
The collaboration builds on an existing relationship between Apple Music and TikTok. In 2023, TikTok added a feature that allowed users to save songs directly to their Apple Music libraries. The following year, Apple Music introduced a tool for sharing tracks to TikTok from its app.
In December, TikTok reported that its Add to Music App tool has been used to save over 3 billion tracks to music streaming services since its launch in 2023/2024. Aside from Apple Music, the feature is also available for users of Amazon Music, Spotify, as well as Anghami, SoundCloud, Deezer, Melon, and TIDAL.
According to TikTok, those 3 billion-plus song saves were responsible for generating “billions more streams and driving music into the charts worldwide.”
TikTok has been doubling down on its music discovery offerings in recent years. Last year, TikTok released its second annual Music Impact Report, carried out in conjunction with market monitor Luminate. The report shows that 84% of the songs that reached Billboard’s Global 200 last year went viral first on TikTok. Another 12% went viral on TikTok after hitting the Global 200 chart, and only 4% of tracks on the chart didn’t experience a viral moment on TikTok.
For Apple Music, the latest TikTok partnership allows it to reach TikTok’s younger audience, particularly users who may not subscribe to traditional music streaming services.
In August, the platform partnered with TuneIn to launch six live radio stations, marking the first time Apple Music’s 24/7 radio programming has become available outside its own ecosystem.
These efforts come as Apple Music struggles to maintain its position against streaming rival Spotify. Apple’s market share of US digital music subscribers dropped to 25% at the end of last year from 30% in 2020, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing MIDiA Research. Meanwhile, Spotify expanded its domestic market share to 37% from 31% over the same period.
Globally, Apple Music’s position has also weakened further. The company’s worldwide subscriber share shrank to 12% from 16% since 2020, the Journal said.
Price-wise, an Apple Music subscription still costs less than a Spotify Premium subscription. Spotify raised its Premium price in the US to $11.99 in 2024 from $9.99 in 2022, while Apple Music, priced at $10.99 hasn’t seen a price hike in the US since 2022. (In the US, as of February, Spotify’s monthly subscription costs have risen from $11.99 to $12.99.
To attract more Premium subscribers, Apple Music has rolled out new tools for users including translation capabilities and karaoke features. It also expanded its playlist transfer feature to more markets.
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