Future

The future is what will happen in the time after the present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently exists and will exist can be categorized as either permanent, meaning that it will exist forever, or temporary, meaning that it will end. The future and the concept of eternity have been major subjects of philosophy, religion, and science, and defining them non-controversially has consistently eluded the greatest of minds. In the Occidental view, which uses a linear conception of time, the future is the portion of the projected time line that is anticipated to occur. In special relativity, the future is considered absolute future, or the future light cone.

In the philosophy of time, presentism is the belief that only the present exists and the future and the past are unreal. Religions consider the future when they address issues such as karma, life after death, and eschatologies that study what the end of time and the end of the world will be. Religious figures such as prophets and diviners have claimed to see into the future. Organized efforts to predict or forecast the future may have derived from observations by early man of heavenly objects.

Epic Records

Epic Records is an American record company. A division of Sony Music Entertainment, Inc., Epic was founded predominantly as a jazz and classical music label in 1953. It later expanded its scope to include diverse musical genres including pop, R&B, rock and hip hop. Over the years, the label has housed popular acts such as Boston, Celine Dion, Dave Clark Five, Fiona Apple, Gloria Estefan, Jennifer Lopez, Michael Jackson, Pearl Jam, Sade, Shakira, and Sly & the Family Stone.

Along with Columbia and RCA Records, Epic is one of Sony Music Entertainment's three main record labels. L.A. Reid has served as chairman and CEO of Epic since July 2011. Sylvia Rhone was appointed president in March 2014.

History

Beginnings

Epic Records was launched in 1953 by Columbia Records for the purpose of marketing jazz, pop and classical music that did not fit the theme of its more mainstream Columbia Records label. Initial classical music releases were from Philips Records which distributed Columbia product in Europe. Pop talent on co-owned Okeh Records were transferred to Epic which made Okeh a rhythm and blues label. Epic's bright-yellow, black, and blue logo became a familiar trademark for many jazz and classical releases. This has included such notables as the Berlin Philharmonic, Charles Rosen, the Juilliard String Quartet, Antal Doráti conducting the Hague Philharmonic and George Szell conducting the Cleveland Orchestra.

Sony Music Entertainment

Sony Music Entertainment Inc. (sometimes known as Sony Music or by the initials, SME) is an American music corporation managed and operated by Sony Corporation of America (SCA), a subsidiary of Japanese conglomerate Sony Corporation. In 1929, the enterprise was first founded as American Record Corporation (ARC) and, in 1938, was renamed Columbia Recording Corporation, following ARC's acquisition by CBS. In 1966, the company was reorganized to become CBS Records. In 1987, Sony Corporation of Japan bought the company, and in 1991, renamed it SME. It is the world's second largest recorded music company, after Universal Music Group.

In 2004, SME and Bertelsmann Music Group merged as Sony BMG Music Entertainment. When Sony acquired BMG's half of the conglomerate in 2008, Sony BMG reverted to the SME name. The buyout led to the dissolution of BMG, which then relaunched as BMG Rights Management. Out of the "Big Three" record companies, with Universal Music Group being the largest and Warner Music Group, SME is middle-sized.

Google Play

Google Play or Google Play Store, and originally the Android Market, is a digital distribution platform operated by Google. It serves as the official app store for the Android operating system, allowing users to browse and download applications developed with the Android SDK and published through Google. Google Play also serves as a digital media store, offering music, magazines, books, movies, and television programs. It previously offered Google hardware devices for purchase until the introduction of a separate online hardware retailer, Google Store, on March 11, 2015.

Applications are available through Google Play either free of charge or at a cost. They can be downloaded directly to an Android or Google TV device through the Play Store mobile app, or by deploying the application to a device from the Google Play website. Many applications can be targeted to specific users based on a particular hardware attribute of their device, such as a motion sensor (for motion-dependent games) or a front-facing camera (for online video calling).

Apple Music

Apple Music is a music streaming service developed by Apple Inc. Users select music to stream to their device on demand. The service includes the curated Internet radio station Beats 1, the blog platform Connect that allows artists to share their posts, photos, videos and tracks with fans, and Radio which incorporates some aspects of iTunes Radio. Apple Music provides music recommendations based on user's taste and is integrated with Siri voice commands.

Overview

Apple stated at the WWDC 2015 that the service would launch at the end of June 2015 and would be free for the first three months of usage. After that, Apple Music subscription would cost US$9.99 per month, close to the economic equilibrium point for the recording industry estimated by the Open Music Model.

Users select music on a device, which then plays on the device via Internet streaming and may be saved to the device for offline access. The service also provides music recommendations based on user taste. While Apple Music's cost and music library are similar to other music streaming services, the service aims to distinguish itself with added features and content exclusives.