SPOTIFY CONFIRMS PRICE BUMP

Spotify has confirmed it will be charging individual subscribers $1 more per month for its ad-free premium plan, while family and student plans are going up two bucks.

With the price rising today to $10.99 for individuals and $14.99 for families in the U.S., Canada, U.K., and Australia, current customers are being given a one-month grace period before the new price becomes effective. The price hike will also take effect throughout Europe and South America and parts of Asia.

It is the streaming service’s first price hike since it launched in the U.S. in 2011.

Spotify said the price hikes “will help us continue to deliver value to fans and artists on our platform.” Subscribers will get an email Monday about the new prices and options to renew or cancel.

The streamery boasts the most subscriptions globally but has been a hold out among competitors like Apple, Amazon and YouTube, which previously upped their prices in established markets. Spotify had already begun increasing the cost of its family plan last year, contributing to a rise in per-user revenue.

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said last month subscribers can expect price hikes for the service sometime in 2023. Spotify’s premium plan allows a single user to listen ad-free on and offline. The company charges more a month for additional users.

Music executives have urged streaming services to increase their basic monthly price and explore other pricing options and tiers for years in hopes of creating more of a “windfall” for labels and artists.

Spotify’s stock has had a tremendous year—it’s up 110% as of Monday morning—and since the news slipped out late Friday, the stock has had the slightest of dips. Ek will definitely be talking about the price hike Tuesday (7/25) morning when Spotify releases its second quarter results.