According to an insider, Spotify will introduce a new, more expensive premium subscription plan this year, which will finally make lossless digital music available. Users will pay at least $5 for the best quality audio and new tools for creating playlists and managing their library.
Spotify will position Hi-Fi as an additional option - it will not replace any existing plans. Users will remain on their current plans unless they choose the additional features. The total cost will depend on the base plan, but a roughly 40% markup is expected. Earlier this week, Spotify shares rose by 2.9%.
Spotify announced Hi-Fi audio back in February 2021, but the rollout has not happened yet. Most other streaming music services already offer high-quality audio.
Rumors of a new subscription tier surfaced after Spotify raised prices for users in many countries. Last week, the company stated that it would raise prices in the US by $1 per month in July - to $11.99 per month. Last year, the US plan cost increased by $1 to $10.99 after remaining unchanged for over 10 years.
The new premium plan could add hundreds of millions of revenue to Spotify, which will then be distributed to music rights holders. It is currently unknown what percentage of users are interested in the new tier and whether music authors will receive additional payments.
Subscribers to the new plan will also be able to instantly create their own playlists for specific activities, dates, seasons, and more. Playlists will be personalized for each user based on their behavior, eventually being created without prompts.
Source: Bloomberg
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