Spotify Raises Premium Subscription Prices in India, But Hi-Fi Still Missing

Spotify on Monday announced a price hike to its Premium subscription that offers ad-free listening in the highest audio quality. The new prices will impact users in “multiple markets,” including South Asia, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and the Asia-Pacific. The monthly cost of Spotify Premium in India has also increased from ₹119 to ₹139, representing a jump of around 17 per cent.

“To continue to innovate on our product offerings and features and bring users the best experience, we occasionally update our prices,” said Spotify. The Duo subscription price is now ₹179 instead of ₹149 per month, while the student plan now costs ₹69 per month.

The revision of the premium subscription is part of the Swedish streaming giant’s strategy to improve margins, but its announcement might be ill-timed. Spotify’s lossless audio tier, previously referred to as “Hi-Fi”, is nowhere in sight despite multiple leaks and hints. According to some reports, Spotify’s anticipated highest-end tier will offer CD-quality music, possibly with spatial audio support.

Spotify Hi-Fi was first announced back in 2021, with a release slated for later that year. However, the launch was delayed due to several reasons, including competitive pressures from Apple Music and Amazon Music, which offer access to Dolby Atmos and lossless music without an additional fee. Eventually, Spotify stopped so much as mentioning Hi-Fi in its subsequent events. Some recent rumours have suggested Spotify has rebranded this tier to ‘Music Pro’, but instead of being a regular tier, it could be an add-on feature available at an additional price.

That means the latest price hike might not include access to Music Pro if Spotify decides to roll the feature out in the coming weeks. But that is a big if because the company has remained silent.

Spotify’s new prices for its Premium subscription could inspire not just Apple but other players, such as Amazon Music, YouTube Music, and Tidal (which is available only in select markets), to raise their subscription prices. Apple revised the Apple Music subscription cost in India from ₹99 to ₹119 last year quietly, largely in an attempt to standardise its streaming services with Spotify’s. Google’s YouTube also increased the monthly subscription from ₹99 to ₹119 shortly after Spotify and Apple Music’s price revisions.

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