Spotify has officially denied rumors that its Premium tier will begin including advertisements. The streaming service came under fire from users who had criticized the plan to introduce ads.

The origins of these rumors can be traced back to a recent technical glitch that inadvertently displayed ads to users who were subscribed to Spotify Premium. This bug led to considerable confusion, prompting Premium subscribers to flock to Spotify's Community forum to voice their concerns. After weeks of addressing the issue, Spotify has ensured that no further discrepancies have arisen since fixing the bug, yet anxiety over potential ad inclusion lingers among users.

Spotify quelled the rumors surrounding the issues, stating unequivocally that "Premium music listening is and will remain ad-free," with the exception of its podcast content.

While Spotify has emphasized its dedication to an ad-free environment for music streaming, speculation continues regarding a possible introduction of a new tier featuring ads.  This follows a broader industry trend where major streaming platforms like Netflix and Prime Video have begun offering budget-friendly subscription options that incorporate advertisements. Netflix's ad-supported plan has notably achieved remarkable success by attracting over 40 million subscribers.

Given the rapidly changing pricing models in subscription-based streaming services, many people wonder if Spotify could eventually mirror these strategies in the music streaming industry. The anticipation of the much-awaited Spotify HiFi tier, which is slated for launch later this year, further fuels discussions about the potential for an overhaul in the subscription plans. As streaming platforms continue to seek avenues for maintaining affordability while improving their services, the question remains: could Spotify offer a lower-tier subscription containing ads? That would keep existing Premium subscribers happy as they would not have to deal with ads, while potentially attracting new users with an affordable plan.

Source: TechRadar