Billy Steele / Engadget
You can also listen to 360 Reality Audio on headphones, as long as you have the proper streaming service on your phone. Sony plans to license its headset personalization technology, which analyzes the user’s ears and hearing, to other companies. It will also license a technology that will allow 360 Reality Audio to be played on phones and in cars. There is still no timetable for either, but it is clear that Sony hopes to have its engaging audio in more places soon.
Currently, if you want to listen to 360 Reality Audio music at home, you’ll need a speaker like Amazon’s Echo Studio. You will also need a subscription for the high resolution level of a service like Amazon Music, Tidal or Deezer. Sony debuted the platform in the fall of 2019, but only for headphones. At that time, there were only 1,000 tracks available – most from Sony Music artists. Now, the company says it has expanded that number to 4,000, but it is still a small selection. Spotify, for comparison, has more than 50 million songs.
To expand the content library, Sony will begin offering live performances with 360 Reality Audio sound. It will start with a live show by Zara Larsson on Monday, January 11 at 5 pm Eastern time, through the Artist Connection app. Of course, the company is promising “a realistic music experience” or something that sounds like you’re really there. Sony says it hopes to offer this option to the public, as concert halls are still closed due to COVID-19. The company is working with record companies and services to broadcast “new video content” later this year.
Sony
For there to be more content, you have to give creators, musicians and producers the tools to do 360 Reality Audio things. Sony worked with Virtual Sonics to build software called 360 Reality Audio Creative Suite. The goal is to make content creation easier for the platform through this plug-in software compatible with “popular” digital audio workstation (DAW) applications. Through its Audio Futures subsidiary, Virtual Sonics will launch the software for 360 Reality Audio later this month. Sony is also working with Music.com and The Orchard on a creator program that will offer access to the Creative Suite and stream 360 Reality content later.
I have been skeptical of 360 Reality Audio since its introduction. Since the jump, it seemed that Sony faced a difficult escalation with the construction of a content library and convincing the public of new hardware was worth the commitment. Two years later, it appears that the company finally has a clear plan – both to send its own speakers and to expand its listening options. The only question now is how long Sony will take to make it happen.