More sound quality for more money: Spotify HiFi is really coming this year
Spotify HiFi is a running joke: there have been reports of a subscription with enhanced sound quality since 2017, but this year it really should be ready.
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Have you ever read this? Spotify wants to offer a more expensive subscription with lossless music streaming this year. If this sounds familiar: Spotify HiFi is something of a running gag in the streaming industry. Heise online first reported on the supposedly more expensive offer with higher sound quality in 2017. Since then, hardly a year has gone by without news that the market launch of Spotify HiFi is imminent.
HiFi reporting reached its temporary peak in 2021 when Spotify officially announced the subscription. However, nothing has happened to date – apart from further “maybe it will happen this year” reports. The source of these reports was regularly the US business newspaper Bloomberg, which seems to maintain good contacts with Spotify employees. And Bloomberg can be relied on again this year: “The company hopes to launch the Music Pro tier later this year,” according to an article published on Sunday.
Music Pro with remixing and concert tickets
Music Pro is the new name of the HiFi subscription, and the concept has also changed somewhat, according to Bloomberg: The more expensive Spotify subscription is said to offer remixing tools and access to concert tickets in addition to higher sound quality. For this, Spotify wants to charge up to 6 US dollars per month more than the normal subscription variants.
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According to Bloomberg, Spotify expects millions of subscribers in the new tier. The new subscription is to be released in phases and expanded over time with additional tools and features. The first options are to start testing in the course of the year. It remains to be seen whether Music Pro will be launched worldwide or only tested in certain regions for now.
Several Spotify competitors have been offering lossless streaming quality for years, including Tidal, Apple Music and Amazon Music. In the past, Spotify's supposedly poor sound quality has led Neil Young, for example, to temporarily remove his music from the streaming service.
(dahe)
