The Glass is Too Big - Home

5 Reasons I'm Dumping Rhapsody and Going Back to Yahoo Music and Last.FM

Originally published on: 9/21/2006 4:41:36 PM

Yesterday, I cancelled my Rhapsody subscription after a couple of months of running it side by side with Yahoo Music. Of course, the cancellation required that:



  1. I actually call them rather than do it online.

  2. Argue for 10 minutes with "Daryl" in an offshore callcenter about whether I had actually understood the service.

  3. Listen to and decline the last-ditch pitch for a free month if I just wait until November to call "Daryl" again and cancel.



If I hadn't been certain of my decision before the call, I was determined beyond all doubt after arguing.

Anyway, the reason I cancelled is mildly convoluted, but makes sense to me. It all stems from the reason I signed up in the first place: to get access to my listening history via API.

The Rhapsody API gave me that, albeit limited in form. It was on the lines of the "Last XX" tracks. That's not ideal (I want access to complete history), but was a step in the right direction. Given that one of my favorite things about these online subscription music services is that I can listen to any new album that comes out, new artists, etc. without knowing in advance whether I'll like it or not. Unfortunately, that's already resulted in several instances where I listened to an album, liked it and couldn't remember who it was a week later.

Then, I found a plugin for Yahoo Music that submits the listened to tracks over at Last.FM. Those API's are also hooked into by other players as well, providing a much better place to store the musical attention history.

That left the 2 services open to a more fair comparison and Rhapsody lost out on pretty much all other counts.



  1. I hate the Rhapsody interface and see no way to ever change it. It's that ugly, black interface that is desperately screaming "I'm a media application". I just want a simple interface and, if I took the time to build one for Yahoo's skinning API, I could have exactly what I want. But, even the default one is much more subdued and fits into my desktop better.

  2. I never figured out a reasonable way to get the Rhapsody songs onto my MP3 player. I know it's possible because I paid for the "ToGo" account, but it wasn't as simple as it was for Yahoo's. I pretty much could just put the songs on and the licensing was taken care of.

  3. Rating songs, albums and artists in Rhapsody is a joke. On Yahoo, the little stars are right next to the playing title and don't make any changes to the page. You just darken the stars.

  4. Yahoo's way of getting a list of recommended songs into a playlist is just more intuitive. Beyond that, their personal radio station is a way to just get "good" music on random. I missed that on Rhapsody.

  5. Rhapsody's customer service sucks. When I had a problem with the number of PC's Yahoo thought I was using, I sent an email and had the PC count reset in a matter of hours. To cancel Rhapsody, I had to call an offshore call center, during "business hours". That's absurd, given that operating that call center during Eastern timezone business hours means that the operators are working at night. I just barely made it in time or I would have had to wait until today to do it.



So, I'm dumping Rhapsody. I'll be porting over the What I'm Listening To page to the Last.FM API instead. Otherwise, I'm just back to using Yahoo and will likely keep that subscription for a long time.

That's because, for the cost of 1.5 albums a month on iTunes (for tracks that I could only listen to on a specific MP3 player and a couple of computers), I can get ongoing access to thousands of albums on a few computers and a specific *class* of MP3 players. Given that I used to easily buy 2-3 new CD's a month, this is cheaper and I can still get the obscure CD's I want in addition.

Comments

J Wynia
commented on 9/22/2006
Bonus reason: My multimedia keyboards on the home theater and at work will play/pause/stop etc. on Winamp, Yahoo Music, Windows Media Player, MediaPortal, etc. but not Rhapsody. Given that I frequently need to pause to go do something or answer the phone or talk to someone who comes to my desk, having to switch to the gaudy Rhapsody interface to pause just pisses me off.
Mike
commented on 10/5/2006
How did you get the Last.FM to interface with your "What I'm Listening To" Page like that?

Proprietary code? Care to share?
J Wynia
commented on 10/5/2006
I actually wrote it up on Tuesday:

http://www.wynia.org/wordpress/2006/10/02/grabbing-musical-attention-data-from-lastfmaudioscrobbler/

beth
commented on 10/6/2006
help!!I need the tel # to cancel, i cant even get to manage my account.they are charging me for an account i cancelled a year ago for my daughter thanks
Peter
commented on 10/7/2006
I Want To Know

If Ican DownLoad Some Music

andHow Can IDo That With Out inId

andPleaseEmail Me Petew38@hotmail.Com

and I Live At117CarloCresent andMy PostalCode IsP1B8A9 and My Phone Number Is 1705-4769588
fool
commented on 11/24/2006
For a different perspective:I have been using Rhapsody since about two months after it debuted (2002 or thereabouts), and I have always thought highly of it. In fact, except for Napster (which at the time Rhapsody came online, was an illegal music sharing site), there was pretty much no one else doing this to the extent Rhapsody was.At that time, there was no "portable music" problem because there were next to no MP3 player; MP3s were pretty much "computer only" media. Rhapsody WAS a bit behind the curve when it came to "music to go," and there FAQ entry for "when can I download music" for the longest time was "we're working on it."However, back a few years ago I glommed onto Replay Music, a stream recorder, and that was how I started my now-rather-extensive MP3 collection (large enough at least that I have a new 80GB iPod completely full, and still had to leave a whole lot of stuff off), with Rhapsody + Replay Music. Of course, doing it that way, I have never had any DRM issues with which to contend. My only regrets have been related to artists that don't appear on Rhapsody.Now, I'm an "old guy," 49 years of age, so my main focus has been less on "new music" (except for a few artists, mostly jazz), and more on "catching up" with the vast continent of stuff I (a) haven't ever heard before but wanted to have, (b) was familiar with but didn't have in recorded form, (c) stuff I USED to have in recorded form - mainly vinyl - but have no longer, and (d) stuff I have in recorded form but only on vinyl, cassette tape or on CD from before the "digitally remastered" craze began.Anyway, Rhapsody has always served my needs very well from that perspective, and I wouldn't dream of changing. I've looked a little bit at some of the other services, but they don't seem to offer ME any advantage over Rhapsody, so I stand pat.
Stan
commented on 2/15/2007
You're lucky J.

I've been through the same cancellation torture, including

the long and pointless argument with the offshore call center.

I finally received my cancellation number, but Rhapsody

still keeps trying to charge my card twice a day.

Fortunately I left zero balance on the card just for such

occasion. I wonder if Rhapsody will ever get tired of trying

to rip me off. Anyone who is considering to sign up with

Rhapsody, be prepared. it's a commitment for life,

they may never let you go.
acarr
commented on 2/5/2008
Looks like we're all going to be stuck with Rhapsody now.

"Yahoo is selling its digital music subscription service to Rhapsody America - a partnership of Real Networks and MTV Networks - as it revamps its music strategy.

ADVERTISEMENT

Yahoo Music will continue to offer music videos, Internet radio and music downloads. But customers of its monthly Yahoo Music Unlimited service will be migrated to Rhapsody. No firm timetable has been set. Yahoo, which expects the deal to close by the middle of year, did not disclose terms."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/usatoday/20080204/tc_usatoday/yahoosellingmusicservicetorhapsodyamerica

Frank (Alaska Hawk)
commented on 4/24/2007
I think that I've wasted an hour or two trying to connect to Rhapsody's 'phone. The ability to subscribe and then not be able to unsubscribe does definitely qualify this organization as a scam. I spent many years in investigative work, and know many ways to neutralize these scumbags. It won't happen tomorrow, but just be patient; it will happen. And, legally, too!
Charles M.
commented on 1/31/2008
Do you have a subscription service now?
Charle M.
commented on 1/22/2008
Hey, nothing to do with your current blog (though I did read it, and I think you should write more on consulting gigs - it was helpful).

Something way more important than money and work - do you still do Yahoo Music? I wanted to buy the SanDisk Sansa for the Yahoo subscription I have, but the Yahoo To Go site seems to have been removed.

Is it still working?
J Wynia
commented on 1/23/2008
I ended up shutting my account down a while ago when I started using more Linux machines than Windows machines, and I think they've since shut down the service as well.
Aart
commented on 2/11/2008
I was simply heartbroken after hearing about Yahoo's decision to sell YahooMusic to Rhapsody.

As a former MusicMatch subscriber, I already felt like a poor red-headed stepchild when MusicMatch sold to Yahoo... now we are getting sold again. Each time the price goes up too, and this time, way up!

I sure hope a miracle happens and the deal goes sour and Yahoo pulls up before it's too late. This is a prime example, in my opinion, why Yahoo is loosing dominance. Just when they get something right, someone gets a wild hair and drops the ball. By getting rid of their wonderful music service they are REALLY dropping the proverbial ball.
Tiffany
commented on 1/29/2009
I hate this company and their players. I've have a Rhap. player for about 2 years now and upgraded to the Ibiza. I have had problems with my last player of theirs, and now have even more and so mad at them! This player (the Ibiza) wont trasnfer songs, (very suddenly all this happened), wont play songs, and customer service is awful. The Tech people in India do their best, but are still pretty incompetant unless you deal with a supervisor. The american tech people directly at the company are horrible. The woman I've talked to twice is rude and listen to this: I'm trying (was) to exchange my player under the manafacturers warranty and she said I have to MAIL IN the receipt before I can even begin! Oh and she wouldn't give me the address to mail it to them, per company 'protocal'. What the?!? It's not worked proplerly for 2 months and now I have to wait for snail mail?!? This upsets me as I travel alot and now I wont have an MP3 player... (believe me, I need it with as much as I do!) My husband's works, maybe I just got the lemon, but seriously after dealing with the incompetancy I just am gonna find 'something' else I think. My husband is gonna have to work hard to replace this stupid thing and for me to keep using it as he still likes it. Me, HATE IT. Seriously if you have alot of music on your computer, dont get this. not worth the extreme headache.
Mama K
commented on 10/3/2008
How are they getting away with making us go through the phone call (uh, whut??) to cancel Rhapsody, something for which you sign up online? I know this is a scam to deter people from canceling. Some of us have a little trouble spending a half-hour on the phone during the work day!! So what can we do about it? I want to let everyone in the free world know about this, to spare them what many of us have already gone through.
Sarah
commented on 10/23/2008
I had Yahoo Music and loved it, now that they've merged and I'm stuck with Rhapsody (which DOES NOT have the equivalent music selection as Yahoo Music, as we were assured by Yahoo's Answer page, grr!), I want out so bad.

Is there an alternative music source out there other than iTunes and Rhapsody? If there's a decent one, I'm so there. My subscription is up in May 09, and I'm NOT paying Rhapsody for another year's worth of misery.

Jimmy
commented on 1/6/2009
Rhapsody lasted only a few days for me I took the free trial and checked it out for 2 days, Everything seemed easy enough . Now with 3 teenagers in my household a music service is something pretty needed. So I went for Rhapsody to go figured we could keep all 3 of their MP3 players loaded with tunes and I could listen to what I want while sitting at my Desk. They charged me the $14.99 right away along with an additional $8.91 that they couldnt explain and wouldnt refund when I called the Offshore Call center. Now thinking a little ahead I did pay for it with PayPal by generating a single use secure card, Now after all that only 2 days later they try and charge me another $14.99 and naturally the charge is denied and I get an Email saying my subscription has been discontinued until I pay them again. I call the Offshore call center again and they try hard to convince me that my 30days subscription had past even though I had only started it 3 days prior in fact only 5 days if you include the free trail days.

DONT call the call center unless you have no other choice these are the stupidest people on the planet and it will annoy you almost to tears
Jake
commented on 12/23/2008
HELP ME!!! My Songs (which are about 160) Are All Stuck On Rhapsody. I Have An Ipod Nano And I Would Like To Put Them BACK ON MY IPOD. It Says I Have 0 Songs, Some plzzzz help Me!!!
Joel M. (Seattle)
commented on 3/29/2009
How is Rhapsody still in business? Why hasn't there been a class-action lawsuit filed for their unethical billing practices and deceptive sales of products & services? Somebody Please tell me how this company can put so many people through so much misery for so many years without any ramifications whatsoever?
Joel M. (Seattle)
commented on 3/29/2009
Do yourself a favor: Dump Rhapsody NOW;

Cut your losses, run, and don't look back;

Numerous sites reflect the same charges against Rhapsody; Most Importantly: Do NOT under any circumstances rely on a Cancellation Number from Rhapsody! A cancellation number will NOT prevent Rhapsody from resuming monthly charges a year later! Reporting your credit / debit card as lost is your ONLY protection!

PLEASE FORWARD A LINK OF THIS SITE TO ALL RHAPSODY MEMBERS YOU KNOW.

riboflvn
commented on 2/14/2010
Rhapsody is slowing falling behind. Tracks that play one day disappear the next because they don't keep up on licensing. They don't have any corporate solution worked out for iPods, Andrioids and other hot devices. They will slowly die if they don't keep up.
DocHumboldt
commented on 2/20/2010
The thing that is most annoying, for me anyway, about Crapsody is that whomever was allowed to write the band bio's and album notes is a complete moron. The bits are ill informed, juvenile, snotty and just downright wrong about 50% of the time. It's like reading a petulant, 12 year old version of Robert Christgau sitting on a tack.

The guys in India need to stop using fake English sounding names too. It's insulting. We're not ALL living in a trailer park here in the USA.

Pissed off
commented on 4/11/2010
How about the fact that Rhapsody literally just doesn't fucking work half the time? About half the time, it's the software equivalent of a paperweight, just taking up memory on my Tivo box. Searches take hours, and when you find what you want to play, nothing happens. Just says "loading" until the program times out and Tivo returns to live TV... Fucking awful, buggy, not-ready-for-prime-time program... Who wrote code? Monkeys? I can't believe they actually fucking charge money for this "service"...
sickofrhapsody
commented on 7/2/2010
Every month, I go thru the same thing... Rhapsody website does not recognize my password. I have to change it. then it doesn't recognize that I have an account when I try to check out with free music. I am so tired of this. and they are never open on Friday night when I need help. This is the crappiest service. Same thing for a year now. So tired of their crappy service. Why cant they remember my password? Why is this so hard? they are forcing me to quit.
Johnny NoOne
commented on 5/13/2010
Kind of funny that the service that you derided in 2006 and the service you loved (yahoo) is no longer around. Still, Rhapsody leaves a lot to be desired. They claim that their app provides UNLIMITED music but you are only allowed 200 songs per playlist! NOT exactly UNLIMITED
tbick
commented on 6/12/2010
Anyone out there sync their Rhapsody library with Sonos home music system? Mine was doing just fine until about 2 months ago, and have since then I've spent many frustrating hours on-line with both the Sonos technical support (smart and decent folks who finally determined the problem was with the Rhapsody software) and the Rhapsody nitwits who haven't got a clue how to fix the problem. So frustrating to have had such a delightful way to play music at parties, etc. for the past 4 years and now--zilch. Any suggestions are much appreciated.
J Wynia
commented on 5/13/2010
I actually still use Last.FM, which I mentioned in the article and Pandora, but for the rest, I just stick to the 15,000 MP3's I have on my hard drive.
jinkies
commented on 4/28/2010
Rhapsody gives the artist .001 cents per download, the lowest by far of any digital distributor. Don't support those crooks, use Itunes instead!! Rhapsody is only interested in paying mainstream artists scads of money for exclusive digital distribution rights even though they make all their money off the backs of the throngs of content creators that comprise the 'long tail' http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Tail
blog comments powered by Disqus
© 2003- 2010 J Wynia. Very Few Rights Reserved.