Spotify ups US price for 2nd time in a year, as songwriters fight royalty cut

Spotify subscriptions are increasing for the second time in a year. Today’s announcement did not include any of the new features and split music audio pricing the streamer has tipped in recent weeks.

Spotify Premium will now rise to $11.99 per month, up from the $10.99 increase announced last year. Spotify Duo is up $2 a month, from $14.99 to $16.99 a month, and the Family plan jumps from $16.99 a month to $19.99.

“So that we can continue to invest in and innovate on our product features and bring users the best experience, we occasionally update our prices,” Spotify sais in a blog post announcing the price increases. “Over the next month, subscribers in the US will receive an email explaining what this update means for their subscription.”

Labels may profit, but not songwriters.

Higher subscription prices should mean more money for labels and recording artists, but songwriters and music publishers seem unlikely to benefit from any net increase in their Spotify royalty payments.

The MLC last week took legal action after Spotify reclassified its Premium Individual, Duo, and Family subscription plans as “Bundled Subscription Offerings” because those plans include access to audiobooks.

It will take months for the courts to decide, but some estimates show the reclassification could cost songwriters up to $150 million annually in the meantime.

Bruce Houghton is the Founder and Editor of Hypebot, a Senior Advisor at Bandsintown, President of the Skyline Artists Agency, and a Berklee College Of Music professor.