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Spotify is raising the price of UK subscriptions for the first time
Spotify users are now paying £10.99 to listen to their favorite music and podcasts after the subscription service raised its prices for the first time in its 10-year history.
The streaming service increased its subscription rates by £1 a month, under pressure from the record industry. The company also claimed that the price hike would enable further growth in an “ever-expanding market.”
Spotify, which announced the changes in a blog post today, said it would notify customers of the changes via email.
The increase in subscription prices, which has reportedly been planned for months, will affect users in several countries around the world, including both the UK and the US.
The company hasn’t yet revealed when the price increase will take effect, but said users will be given a “grey period of one month” before the change “takes effect” unless they cancel during this time.
Spotify users are now paying £10.99 to listen to their favorite music and podcasts after the subscription service raised its prices for the first time in its 10-year history
Spotify’s UK premium plan now costs £10.99 per month, a £1 increase from the previous monthly rate.
The duo plan and family plans – which include six users – also increased by £1 each, now costing users £14.99 and £17.99 respectively.
The only plan unaffected by the increase is the student plan, which has remained at £5.99 per month.
U.S. rates reflected a similar increase, with the family plan now costing $17 per month instead of $16. The duo plan shot from $13 to $15, and the student plan rate remained unchanged.
“Since launching in 2008, Spotify has innovated and invested to build the best audio experience for you and your favorite artists and creators,” the company said in its announcement.
The company added: “The market landscape has continued to evolve since our launch. To keep innovating, we’re changing our Premium pricing in a number of markets around the world. These updates will help us continue to deliver value to fans and artists on our platform.”
Spotify noted that with more than 200 million subscribers, it is “the most popular audio streaming subscription service in the world.”
MailOnline has approached Spotify for comment.