MSFT Zune is Finally Gone

Microsoft is saying buh-bye to its streaming music and download service, Groove Music.

As of Dec. 31 the subscription service will no longer exist, the company said on Monday. Instead, Microsoft said it's partnering with rival service Spotify.  Anyone with a subscription to Groove will be able to move their curated playlists and collection from Groove to Spotify. As part of the transition, qualified Groove Music Pass users will also be able to receive 60 days of Spotify Premium for free.

Groove was Microsoft's attempt to compete against popular streaming services from rivals like Apple and Google. But the service never took off. Groove, which had been renamed in 2015, was the last vestige of its failed Zune music playerlegacy, which ultimately lost out to Apple's iPod and the Apple iTunes store. Microsoft had hoped to breathe new life into the service that allowed customers to stream music, as well as play downloaded music from Microsoft's OneDrive cloud storage service.

Microsoft had already been working with Spotify to provide access to that streaming app through Windows 10 and the Xbox One platform. Even though Groove Music won't be offering streaming music starting next year, users will still be able to access local MP3 files and music stored in OneDrive.