All Amazon Prime members will soon have access to a lot more music and podcasts without ads, as the e-commerce giant looks to streamline its offerings under one set membership fee.
Amazon Music will grant all Prime members access to over 100 million songs without advertisements, as well as even more top podcasts, without charging an additional fee. Previously, all Prime subscribers paying the $139 annual fee could listen to about 2 million songs for free, and were limited to shuffling between albums or genres. If members wanted access to a full catalogue of music on-demand, they had to fork up an additional $8.99 per month for Amazon Music Unlimited.
In an effort to challenge retailer rivals such as Walmart and Costco Wholesale which have been combining various features and streaming services into one bundle, Amazon Music decided to follow suit and give users access to more features under the Prime membership umbrella— essentially mimicking the functions of Spotify’s free tier minus the advertisements. “We can’t wait for members to experience not only a massively expanded catalog of songs, but also the largest selection of ad-free top podcasts anywhere, at no additional cost to their membership,” said Amazon Music Vice President Steve Boom, as cited by the Associated Press.
However, with Amazon now offering access to more music without ads, the company will likely have to pay higher record label fees should streaming volume substantially increase. Rivals such as Apple Music recently raised its monthly fee by one dollar, while Spotify Technology promises price hikes come 2023. Making matters worse, though, is the plateauing of new subscribers; Amazon Prime annual subscription growth in the US is expected to slow from 20% to 2% by 2025, according to forecasts by research firm Insider Intelligence.
Information for this briefing was found via The Associated Press and the sources mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to this organization. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
