There were recent rumors that Samsung was partnering with Jay-Z on a music streaming service for its Galaxy smartphones and tablets. It was believed that the tech company and rapper signed a $20 million deal to collaborate on the service, and it would directly compete with Google's Play Music All Access. Apple recently announced iTunes Radio to compete with Pandora, and others in the crowded music streaming service world, and Samsung and Jay-Z's announcement would mean one more competition.
Samsung is going to broadcast the message to millions of potential subscribers by teaming up with Jay-Z and announcing the service live at the 2013 NBA Finals. Samsung sent out the above image confirming that the company and rapper are working together and that the announcement will take place during game five of the NBA Finals on Sunday. While there has been no confirmation on what the announcement will be, the invite and partnership pretty much confirms that it has something to do with music on Samsung mobile devices. The photo features a Samsung Galaxy S4 and a gold Roc-a-fella chain. Jay-Z's name is seen on the S4's display along with the instruction to "Tune in" and "Turn up the volume" this Sunday, June 16 at 9:15 pm EST.
As we previously reported, there have been rumors that Samsung was looking to offer a streaming music service of its own for Galaxy smartphones and tablets, just as Google and Apple have both recently announced their own music streaming efforts. How this service will tie in with Jay-Z isn't exactly clear. Some industry insiders believe that since Jay-Z recently moved his Roc Nation record label from Sony to Universal, the deal would heavily promote artists from Roc Nation's label and could possibly include artists from Universal, though there haven't been any major leaks on what the service will entail.
We'll have to tune in Sunday night to find out all the details.
