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Industry insiders confirm that Spotify is gearing up to launch "Music Pro," a new subscription tier featuring lossless audio and exclusive DJ tools. This will mark a significant shift in the music streaming service's offerings.
Enhancing User Experience with Lossless Audio
Spotify's lossless audio experience is being hinted at once more, this time through code discovered by The Verge(via MacRumors) in new Android app versions.
More than three years ago, Spotify declared it would provide a "HiFi" subscription service allowing customers to access a library of CD-quality music tracks. The tier was supposed to launch by the end of 2021, but a change in the streaming business derailed that plan.
Since then, Amazon Music has stopped charging extra for its lossless music library, while Apple Music has included lossless listening in the cost of its regular subscription. The actions successfully killed Spotify's initial plan to promote a lossless-only HiFi tier.
Spotify's Potential Lossless Audio Expansion: Pricing Strategies and Competitive Positioning
Nevertheless, lossless doesn't seem like a free perk. According to The Wall Street Journal, the most recent rumors indicate that Spotify plans to offer lossless audio playback in an optional "Music Pro" add-on. This add-on will reportedly have new DJ remix features that allow users to "speed up, mash up, and otherwise edit" songs from their favorite artists.
Spotify's Premium membership ($10.99 monthly or $5.99 for students) may include basic remixing tools. However, the "Music Pro" add-on will have more powerful tools. It's unclear how the latest rumors of a new "Supremium" tier fit in.
Although the expected cost of the premium add-on has not been disclosed, it may be asking too much for consumers to pay anything more than a small amount, considering that several of the company's main competitors already feature lossless in their base plans.
Photo: Iggy Love/Unsplash
