This month in digital music libraries - October 2025

October 31, 2025 in digital music by Dan Gravell

Newspaper

This month saw dramatic shifts in the music technology landscape. Samsung’s acquisition spree continues while AURALiC shutters, the “Death to Spotify” movement reaches mainstream media, and platform dark patterns spark renewed discussion of data sovereignty. Amid the turbulence, new music players emerge with a focus on intentional listening, and self-hosters score a rare victory as Synology backtracks on hardware restrictions.

Industry consolidation and hardware upheaval

Samsung continues its acquisition spree in the home audio space, steadily building its mega-ecosystem.

Samsung's takeover of home audio continues... www.theverge.com/news/784390/...

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— bliss - automated music library management (@blisshq.com) 29 September 2025 at 12:00

Meanwhile, at not-quite-the0-other-end of the market, bad news for the audiophile community: AURALiC, maker of premium network audio streamers, has ceased trading.

Ouch - AURALiC ceases trading stereonet.com/news/auralic...

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— bliss - automated music library management (@blisshq.com) 12 October 2025 at 16:02

The streaming debate intensifies

Streaming economics continue to dominate music industry discussions. A sobering reminder that not every musician can afford to pull their music from streaming platforms, even as their royalties are a comparative pittance.

I'll just leave this here #noteverymusicianistaylorswift audiophilestyle.com/forums/topic...

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— bliss - automated music library management (@blisshq.com) 1 October 2025 at 16:15

YouTube’s ongoing push to convert users to YouTube Music continues to raise eyebrows - and frustrations.

For the love of God no www.dexerto.com/youtube/yout...

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— Astiga - the streaming service for your own music (@asti.ga) 1 October 2025 at 09:14

And the “Death to Spotify” movement gains mainstream attention - though whether the confrontational branding helps or hinders the cause of fair artist compensation remains an open question.

"Death to Spotify" movement gathers pace www.theguardian.com/technology/2... - but might the negative naming harm wider spread support? A lot of people love the platform @UMAW_

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— Astiga - the streaming service for your own music (@asti.ga) 13 October 2025 at 14:51

New music players for intentional listening

For iOS users seeking a more album-focused listening experience, LongPlay offers a refreshing alternative to playlist-centric music apps.

LongPlay is an #iOS music player focused on album listening. @longplay.rocks

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— bliss - automated music library management (@blisshq.com) 8 October 2025 at 15:30

Music appreciation and culture

A fascinating deep dive into the craft of game music composition, examining how Pokémon battle themes are designed to enhance the gaming experience.

A _lot_ of thought goes into crafting game music... jasonyu.me/pokemon-batt...

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— bliss - automated music library management (@blisshq.com) 14 October 2025 at 15:31

And a powerful interview exploring how music intersects with politics and identity - a reminder that music has always been more than just entertainment.

'I was called an enemy of the people' www.theguardian.com/music/2025/o...

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— bliss - automated music library management (@blisshq.com) 18 October 2025 at 15:15

Data sovereignty wins

Good news for self-hosters: Synology reversed its controversial decision to ban third-party hard drives - a rare victory for user choice over vendor lock-in.

Hooray! Synology backtracks on banning third party HDDs www.guru3d.com/story/synolo...

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— bliss - automated music library management (@blisshq.com) 20 October 2025 at 15:30

And a thoughtful piece on how operating systems increasingly use dark patterns to push users toward cloud storage - when local storage might serve them better.

I'm all for using cloud storage where it makes sense, but it shouldn't be pushed on us through dark patterns idiallo.com/byte-size/sa... thanks @dialloibu

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— bliss - automated music library management (@blisshq.com) 24 October 2025 at 15:45

More next month!

Photo by Bruno Bučar on Unsplash

This month in digital music libraries - October 2025