Spotify announced plans to launch a new premium “HiFi” level later this year, which will provide superior lossless audio. According to Spotify, the feature will offer CD-quality music that will allow fans to experience more depth and clarity on their favorite tracks.
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Music streaming services like Tidal, Deezer and Amazon Music offer lossless audio options, but so far, Spotify and Apple Music do not offer superior streaming options.
Spotify is the main competitor of Apple Music, so with Spotify planning a HiFi music option, Apple could also be planning to offer superior streaming in an effort to stay competitive. A lossless audio layer would also go well with Apple’s latest generation AirPods Max headphones, launched in late 2020.
No pricing information is currently available, but Amazon Music’s lossless tier costs $ 14.99 per month ($ 12.99 for Prime subscribers), while Tidal charges $ 19.99 per month and Deezer charges $ 14 , 99 for its high fidelity plan. Spotify plans to launch HiFi in selected markets later this year, and will be a premium-level add-on.
HiFi was presented at Spotify’s Stream On event, which can be watched in full on YouTube.
At the event, Spotify also said it plans to expand to more than 80 new markets in Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America, allowing the service to reach more than 1 billion new potential customers. A complete list of countries where Spotify will be available soon can be found on the Spotify website.
Other announcements included Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen’s new podcast “Renegade” from Spotify, new interactive podcast features for creators, such as question and answer polls and tools, and new music promotion features for artists.