Photo Credit: Spotify
Spotify unveiled major advertising updates at its Spotify Advance event in NYC earlier this month. The detailed changes led to online speculation that Spotify Premium members would begin receiving advertisements—sparking calls for cancelation if that happens. Spotify has flatly denied the rumor.
Spotify Advance detailed several new changes to how Spotify will deliver ads on the audio platform. They include a new programmatic marketplace that enables real-time bidding for audio, video, and display ads across Spotify’s logged in users. Spotify also detailed new Gen AI ads allowing for the use of AI to create ads that leverage Spotify’s listener preferences.
Several tweets circulated over the last few days following the event suggested that Spotify would follow in Netflix’s footsteps by introducing ads on paid plans. The rumor suggested the current $11.99 monthly Premium plan would see limited ads introduced, while Spotify would introduce a higher-paid tier for continued ad-free listening.
“There is a rumor circulating that Spotify is putting ads into premium music listening,” Spotify tweeted to address the rumor. “This rumor is false. Premium music listening is and will remain ad-free.”
Despite the denial, some users have reported encountering ads despite having a paid Premium subscription. Spotify has chalked up those issues to a technical glitch. But the social media backlash to a Premium tier with ads showcases how much people are paying to avoid ads—rather than support artists.
“I hope Spotify knows that the only reason I use them is for Spotify Wrapped and I don’t need it. So the minute I hear a whisper, a hint, a concept of an ad, BYE!” reads one angry tweet about the potential change. These rumors gained traction among Spotify’s rumored upcoming ‘Music Pro’ tier, which is expected to offer higher-fidelity audio and additional features for a higher price—with speculation that ad-free listening would be bumped to this tier.
