Fish swim, birds fly and streaming services increase their prices. That’s (mostly) the way of things. After maintaining the same pricing for Premium for a long time, Spotify looks set to increase it twice within a year in some countries.
According to Bloomberg, Spotify Premium will be around $1 more for an individual plan and about $2 costlier for family and duo plans by the end of April in a few markets, including the UK, Australia and Pakistan. The report suggests the US is in line for a similar increase later this year.
The higher fees are expected to offset the costs of audiobook offerings. Since October, Premium users in select markets have been able to listen to 15 hours of audiobooks per month at no extra cost. The company is said to have seen strong levels of audiobook consumption so far.
If users go over the 15-hour limit, they can pay for a 10-hour top up. It’s there that Spotify makes more money from its Premium audiobook library. The company also sells audiobooks on its web store.
Spotify has been chasing profitability since it went public in 2018 and to help it get there, it’s said to be preparing several more subscription tiers. One of those (a more expensive option) will reportedly offer high-fidelity audio, a feature the company has long been promising.
It may also introduce a basic tier that includes ad-free music and podcasts, with audiobooks being cut out. This plan is expected to cost $11 per month, the same as Spotify currently charges for Premium. As such, that $10 audiobook-only plan Spotify introduced in the US last month is starting to make more sense.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/some-spotify-plans-are-reportedly-getting-more-expensive-soon-143013215.html?src=rss