Spotify is once again raising prices. This time around, the subscription bump is to pay for something that subscribers might not want in the first place.
The cost of Spotify will increase $2 to $4 a month starting at the end of April in five markets including the UK, Australia, and Pakistan, according to a report from Bloomberg. U.S. subscribers will see prices go up later this year. Currently a Spotify premium subscription in Australia starts from $12.99.
As for why the prices are going up, it’s reportedly because of audiobooks. Spotify added audiobooks to its service last year on a trial basis. The price increase is how the streaming service will pay for letting subscribers access those books. Currently, Spotify does receive revenue from subscribers who exceed a 15 hour limit on audiobooks.
Now for those who use Spotify for only music and don’t care about audiobooks, a basic tier is reportedly in the works. This new tier will keep the current $11 a month subscription price, and the option to add audiobooks will be extra.
Spotify declined to comment on whether it was raising prices.
The music streaming service raised its prices last year by $1, which was predicted to translate to more than $1 billion in revenue for the company. Most of that money goes to pay for the licensing fees for all the music available through the service.
Spotify wasn’t the only music service to raise its prices last year. Apple, Amazon, and YouTube Music Premium hiked up their monthly subscription charges as did practically every other streaming service including Netflix, Disney+, and Max. There’s also been a move to bring in ad-supported tiers to streaming.
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