Spotify Tests $0.99 Subscription Tier With Ads But Fewer Playback Limitations
Spotify is experimenting with a new ad-supported subscription tier that gives listeners more freedom over what they listen to compared to the existing free ad-based plan.

Called Spotify Plus, the tier costs $0.99 per month and lets users pick which songs they want to stream between ads, with unlimited skips and on-demand listening.
That's in contrast to Spotify's free ad-based tier, which limits users to skipping no more than six tracks every hour, and only lets them listen to tracks from 15 pre-selected playlists. If they don't want to listen to the playlists, they're limited to shuffling between tracks.
The streaming service confirmed to The Verge that it was piloting Spotify Plus with a limited number of users, but cautioned there was no guarantee that it would get a full rollout and that it "routinely conduct[s] tests to inform our decisions."
Spotify in February announced plans to introduce a new "HiFi premium" tier later this year, but despite some indications that it's been in testing, we've still to see the high-definition plan go live. Since then, Apple Music has launched Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos and Apple Music Lossless, two features that became available to subscribers in June for no additional fee.
Popular Stories
In a move that should be welcomed by parents and guardians of young children, Spotify has announced a new feature that lets you keep kids' and family music played on the service out of your taste profile.
Starting today, Spotify is rolling out a new toggle in the app's settings that prevents kids' music from affecting your personalized recommendations. This includes, for example, songs you...
Apple's long-rumored smart home hub will have an iMac G4-style design and a host of unique features, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.
The smart home hub is said to feature a square 6-inch display, with variants that can be placed on a countertop or mounted on a wall. It features a single FaceTime camera on the front, with microphones and speakers in its connected base. Gurman described the...
Apple plans to introduce a series of new smart home products on Tuesday, October 13, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Apple reportedly plans to debut its long-awaited smart home hub device, a new HomePod mini, and a new Apple TV on the date. The new HomePod mini and Apple TV are set to retain their existing designs, but tout faster chips to support Siri AI. The new HomePod mini will...