Rdio vs Simfy vs Rara vs Deezer in South Africa

Where South Africans were once starved for choice of digital music downloading and streaming services, there are now a number of companies vying for our hard-earned rands.

On the downloading front, Nokia continues to offer its services locally, but was recently joined by Apple which now offers a large part of its iTunes catalogue in South Africa.

When it comes to streaming, Spotify and Pandora may not have entered the South African market yet, but at least four other companies have launched their unlimited, ad-free music streaming services here.

The latest to enter the fray is Rdio, which joined Simfy, Rara, and Deezer in competing for the affections of the South African consumer.

Rdio launched in South Africa on Wednesday, 11 December 2013, offering “web + desktop” and “web + mobile” packages – similar to other services.

However, it also has a free 6 month trial and a family option which offers multiple subscriptions at a reduced price.

The table below compares the reported number of songs of each of the services along with their subscription options in South Africa.

It is worth noting that while Rara does not offer a trial, the first three months of a web subscription is R6.99 per month, while its premium subscription is R13.99 per month for the first three months.

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