Pandora CFO Calls Apple a 'Frenemy,' Says Music Service is Coming to CarPlay ... - Mac Rumors

When Apple's CarPlay feature launched last year, Apple partnered with several music services to offer a variety of listening choices on the platform, including Spotify, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, Rdio, and more.

Noticeably absent from CarPlay was Pandora, but that appears to be set to change. Pandora CFO Mike Herring spoke to Fox Business Network yesterday and said Pandora will "definitely be in CarPlay" and integrated into the Apple Watch as well.

Though Herring did not provide a timeline for the possible launch of a Pandora CarPlay app, his statement to Fox is the closest Pandora's come to revealing its plans for the platform. Last year, Pandora told MacRumors that Apple was a valued partner and though it did not have a CarPlay offering at the current time, it was exploring opportunities to expand its presence in the car in the future.

Speaking to Fox, Herring also spilled some details on Pandora's relationship with Apple, which hints at why there may have been a delay getting Pandora on CarPlay. According to Herring, the two companies have a "frenemy kind of relationship," possibly due to the similarities between Pandora and Apple's iTunes Radio.

Pandora, which owes part of its success to the popularity of its iPhone app, has a "frenemy kind of relationship going on" with Apple, according to Herring. "We were part of what made it fun to have an iPhone," Herring added. While the two companies are "close partners," it is a "very interesting relationship."

At the current time, there are still only a handful of CarPlay apps available, like Spotify, Beats Music, CBS Radio News, Umano, MLB.com At Bat, Overcast, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, and Rdio. If Pandora comes to CarPlay, it'll be the fourth non-Apple owned music app available.

CarPlay is still largely limited to aftermarket in-dash systems from companies like Alpine and Pioneer, as many automobile manufacturers are still working on integrating CarPlay into their vehicles. Of Apple's CarPlay partners, Audi, Volkswagen, and Hyundai have promised CarPlay-compatible cars will be available for purchase in 2015.

"We were part of what made it fun to have an iPhone," Herring added.

I don't know ANYONE who has ever used Pandora and everyone I know has an iPhone.

Really? It's always been one of the most popular iOS apps, especially early on before all these other streaming services appeared. In fact I still use it more than iTunes Radio because it does a much better job at playing new songs and songs that are similar to the artist that I selected. iTunes Radio tends to have a lot of repeats of the same song and sometimes plays songs that are way off from the artist that I select.

Frenemy usually means "I don't know what the hell I'm supposed to do now."

Thats all well in good for CarPlay but right now the only way to really get CarPlay is to install a Pioneer AVIC NEX system and they all offer Pandora integration...I really hope that iOS 9 brings a major enhancement to CarPlay...it is very 1.0. It has potential but it is not ready for prime time yet.

"We were part of what made it fun to have an iPhone," Herring added.

I don't know ANYONE who has ever used Pandora and everyone I know has an iPhone.

You know the Steve Jobs era is over when a company calls Apple a "frenemy" and expects to have a relationship with Cupertino moving forward. :apple:

I'm pretty sure the music industry considers Pandora a frenemy.

plot twist: he is a 17-year old girl

why would you put Pandora on your watch if the watch has to be tethered to your phone? why not just drive it from your phone then? the only advantage I see would be perhaps just controlling it remotely but even still, you're only allowed to skip so many songs, etc.... Just seems odd.

You know the Steve Jobs era is over when a company calls Apple a "frenemy" and expects to have a relationship with Cupertino moving forward. :apple:

Tim is all business. He'll keep them around as long as they're useful while developing the service that is intended to crush them.

iTunes radio algorithms just don't get it. Probably fine for top 40 which is not my thing.

via apple - Google News http://ift.tt/19EmPly