Spotify HiFi could be here soon, but it will cost you

Spotify may have only just raised its prices for a second time in a year, but reports suggest it’s planning an add-on that will finally deliver the high-resolution music that has been rumoured since the dawn of time.

According to Bloomberg who has spoken to a person familiar with the new add-on, users will be charged at least $5 more per month for access to better quality audio and new tools for “creating playlists and managing their song libraries”.

It also looks like Spotify could be stretching further into AI, as the source reports that subscribers will also be able to instantly generate custom playlists around events and dates in the year, which will learn and adapt based on how a user interacts with them.

This music-focused add-on will be positioned as an add-on for existing customers – so it will depend on their base plan as to how much it will cost overall. However, it’s thought it will average out to around a 40% markup, which is pretty punchy considering Tidal offers its high-res music for free.

Of course, the upshot is that the premium plan could generate more money for Spotify that could be shared with music rights holders – something Spotify currently falls behind on compared with its competitors on a per-stream basis.

With Spotify's heavy investment into audiobooks and podcasts over the past few years, this move could finally take the streaming giant back to its audio roots. But is it too little too late for music fans?

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Spotify HiFi: release date news, price prediction, quality, and latest rumours

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I love Tidal's high-quality audio, but I'm still going back to Spotify