Spotify Raises Prices for Second Time in 12 Months, Now More Expensive Than Apple Music

[icanhazmac]

It's hard to fact-check calculations that are based off assumptions.

I agree, that is why I offered multiple levels of listening. I had already written a book so I didn't want to included any more possibilities but it is pretty easy to adjust to whatever consumption level you feel would be accurate. I think 4 hours a day, average, is a reasonable guess but I have no idea. Edit: updated info below.

So for every one "power listener" who streams all day simply because he can, there is probably other "sleeping subscriber" like myself who is still paying out of inertia and is considered "pure profit" by the streaming service because he is not incurring any costs.

Agreed, streaming services must have data on what their average user consumes and work off of that. I am not privy to that so I just picked a worst case scenario and one I felt was reasonable. I don't think anyone streams 24/7 "simply because they can", I think "power streamers" do so because they have businesses like retail stores, restaurants, etc.

While you might be willing to double your subscription cost, with artist compensation guarantees, I doubt you would be in the majority.

What this just proves is that music streaming is not a sustainable business model, and maybe we should never have supported Spotify getting into this market and conditioning users to expect an all-you-can-eat buffet of access to music for just $10 a month.

I agree, I was not trying to justify streaming as viable, at least at its current price. My purpose for the post was to show people that want a $9.99 subscription what that subscription would support in terms of compensation to artists. I am not sure what @maxoakland is disagreeing about, my numbers are correct and math is math, the only point to debate would be how much the average user consumes.

Here is an interesting link I found, I cannot speak to the accuracy of the data:

Music Streaming Services Stats (2025)

The latest data and statistics related to music streaming services including popular platforms, number of subscribers, and user habits.

explodingtopics.com

Shows an average of 20 hours a week so 2.85 hours a day so:

2.85 hours times 30 days = 85.5 hours a month
85.5 hours time 60 minutes = 5130 listening minutes per month, divided by 3.5 average song legnth = 1465 songs per month
1465 songs per month divided by 30 days = 48 songs per day or .48 per day in artist fees, which multiplied by 30 days = 14.40/month in artist fees alone
Add the 50% margin for the streaming services and you get a subscription cost of $28.80/mo

Who here is willing to pay $28.80 / month for streaming music? @maxoakland ??? If people are only willing to pay $9/month for a subscription AND want the artists compensated well they better get used to a stream cap of X number of songs.

 

[eoblaed]

Running a globally available full time music streaming is expensive. Who knew?

I don't personally use Spotify, but these are massive services with huge recurring costs. Price bumps, even a couple within a short window of time, are going to be part of the story.

 

[SBlue1]

I found myself increasingly not wanting to watch ads on YouTube, so I bought YouTube Premium, and to my surprise, YouTube Music is included, which I found was actually pretty good. Enough so that I cut Spotify.

After testing YouTube Premium music I can say that it’s pretty good. I found anything I was searching for, even local underground bands from my city. Wow. There are no restrictions on skipping or songs that require an additional payment like Amazon Prime music. Great quality and nice iPhone app. Thank you again very much. 😊

 

[skit911]

Yes they are. They absolutely are.

See the difference is - once again - Apple pays artists more. They also don’t add audiobooks and podcasts to their service to pay artists LESS.

Spotify’s Music-Audiobook Bundle Means a Lower Royalty Rate for U.S. Songwriters, but Company Promises Record Payouts

Spotify’s music and audiobooks bundle will mean lower royalties for songwriters, but the company claims earnings for creators will continue to rise.

variety.com

Spotify is a garbage company that milks artists for all they are worth.

If you want to support artists you like - buy their music on Google Play or iTunes. I’m a huge metalcore fan, and most of the bands I follow are lucky to come back from tour with $1000 between the 5 of them. Streaming music is the worst deal for musicians and the best for record labels.

Spotify started that business model. Apple just adapted like the rest of the industry. Before Spotify, iTunes actually PAID artists for their work.

 

[Macie1]

I would cancel all streaming music and go back to buying but Apple Music classical got me hooked. I pretty much only listen to classical music.

You will need a third party to move your playlist since apple transfer feature doesn't support spotify maybe you can try using Musconvtool just for your playlist