Deezer takes on Apple Music's Spatial Audio with '360 Sessions'

Spatial Audio with support for Dolby Atmos just launched on Apple Music last week and Deezer is already hot on Apple's trail.

The company has announced in a blog post that it is rolling out "360 sessions" to its music streaming service. The new feature, according to the company, currently features a collection of live performances and, with the power of Sony 360 Reality Audio, users will feel like they are right in front of the stage.

Using Sony's 360 object-based spatial audio technology, our 28 track playlist provides you with the unique immersive experience. This means everything from the track – including vocals, individual instruments and even a live audience can be heard as if they are in different positions inside a 360 spherical space. The end result is an incredible feeling of 'realness', as if the artist is inside the same room as you.

Deezer's 360 Sessions playlist includes performances from:

• Dua Lipa
• Fireboy Dml
• Lolo Zouai
• Joesef
• Barrie
• Circa Waves
• Half Moon Run
• Anne-Marie
• Georgia

Deezer says that listeners can use any model of headphones and that no special hardware will be required to enjoy the feature. Listeners with Sony headphones that are compatible with Headphones Connect will enjoy an "enhanced" experience. However, users must be subscribed to Deezer HiFi, the high fidelity tier from the company that currently costs $15 per month.

Jerome Coïc, Deezer's Senior Special Operations & Partnerships Manager, says that 360 Reality Audio "will transport each music fan to the heart of their favorite performance."

"We wanted to capture the magic and mood of a live performance with Deezer Sessions. Each act brings our fans up close and personal to their favorite artists. To further preserve the integrity and specialness of each recording, we created 'Deezer 360 Sessions' in 360 Reality Audio. With 360 Reality Audio, fans will experience sounds that mimic an omni-directional soundscape that will transport each music fan to the heart of their favorite performance."

Deezer definitely differentiated itself from Apple Music with this offering. While Apple Music currently supports more songs in Spatial Audio, it has not released a collection of live performances specifically recorded for the purpose like Deezer has. Of course, Apple is offering all of its spatial audio content at the same $10 per month price that Apple Music has always cost, whereas Deezer is only offering the experience to customers on its highest-tier plan.

If you want to nab a great set of headphones to check out spatial audio across Apple Music and Deezer, check out our list of the Best headphones for Dolby Atmos for Apple Music 2021.