Spotify is making it easier for couples who live together to split the cost of a premium membership while also merging their music taste. The company is debuting its newest subscription offering, Premium Duo, which costs $12.99 a month and allows two people who live at the same place to share one plan while maintaining their own accounts.
With Premium Duo, Spotify will also create a special Duo Mix playlist that’ll update regularly and incorporate music that both people like. The idea is that Spotify knows what you and your partner like individually, so its software will design a playlist that you can put on in the house that’ll appeal to both of you. Listeners can switch between a chill or upbeat playlist.
Existing, single Premium members can upgrade to Premium Duo at any time and doing so won’t erase their account listening history or preferences. A Family plan membership is $2 more than Duo and supports up to six accounts. That plan also comes with a special Family Mix playlist that promises the same thing as the Duo Mix, except it accounts for the entire family’s preferences. A single Premium membership costs $9.99.
Spotify is clearly trying to design a premium plan for everyone and every stage of life. It offers student discounts, a kids app that’s available through the family plan, and now, a plan for couples. Recurring subscription revenue is especially important to Spotify during the COVID-19 pandemic because advertisers are tightening their budgets. The company said in its most recent earnings report that its ad-supported revenues fell short of its forecast, and it lowered its revenue guidance for the year as a result.
As such, it’s attempted to make Premium a more enticing option through features available only to subscribers. Premium users can share DJ duties with anyone in their immediate vicinity and hide songs from playlists, for example. In the past, it also offered free Hulu and a Google Home Mini to Premium members. With more plans and more features, Spotify is hoping everyone will eventually become a Premium subscriber.