Spotify HiFi release date: When is Spotify’s lossless tier coming?
Back again in February 2021, Spotify built a bold promise to roll out lossless tunes streaming prior to the yr was out. Quickly forward much more than a 12 months afterwards, and there’s nonetheless no indicator of Spotify HiFi.
So, what is the offer? Spotify has been frustratingly tight-lipped about the fate of Spotify HiFi, but the business has allow slip a number of facts about the lacking service. Meanwhile, modern rumors implies that Spotify HiFi may possibly however see the light-weight of day, and possibly shortly.
Here’s what we know–and never know–about when Spotify HiFi could ultimately get there.
What is Spotify HiFi?
Initially introduced back in February 2021, Spotify HiFi was explained as a way for Spotify Top quality customers to “upgrade their seem quality” to a “CD-top quality, lossless audio structure.”
Typically, “CD-quality” implies streaming audio encoded with 16-bit depth and a 44.1kHz sampling amount.
But the critical term listed here is “lossless,” which implies that the audio stream is made up of particularly the exact same sonic detail as its supply.
The most important advertising level listed here is that you’d be hearing the music in the specific way the artist intended–and without a doubt, Spotify posted a video in which Billie Eilish and Finneas extolled the virtues of lossless audio streaming.
As it stands, Spotify streams audio at 320Kbps in the “lossy” Ogg Vorbis structure, which usually means the audio stream has been compressed and is dropping a fair quantity of depth in the interest of conserving bandwidth.
When will Spotify HiFi appear out?
The brief respond to is that we really don’t know when Spotify HiFi will get there. On the other hand, some modern chatter suggests it may possibly land shortly.
According to a article on Reddit, a longtime Spotify person who had not long ago switched to Apple Songs claimed they obtained a survey specific a new plan–“Spotify Platinum”–that offers HiFi, as well as other characteristics this sort of as “Studio Sound,” a “Headphone Tuner,” “Audio Insights,” “Library Pro,” “Playlist Pro,” and “limited-ad” podcasts, all for an excess cost (more on that in a second).
The Redditor reported the study requested if they would change back again to Spotify “in the nest 30 days” for “one of [those] features.”
Exciting stuff–if it’s accurate.
There have been other, previous hints that Spotify HiFi is even now percolating, like a “HiFi” icon spotted in the Spotify app again in May possibly 2021 and a leaked “Hi, HiFi” video clip that designed the rounds a couple of months later on.
Subsequent months of silence about the difficulty, Spotify eventually did communicate up about Spotify HiFi at the starting of 2022, but the vaguely worded assertion supplied scant specifics:
We know that HiFi high-quality audio is essential to you. We feel the similar, and we’re excited to deliver a Spotify HiFi encounter to Top quality consumers in the future. But we do not have timing particulars to share but. We will of program update you in this article when we can.
We attained out to Spotify soon soon after that announcement, but a rep would only say that the company did “not have nearly anything even more to share on HiFi outside of the excitement for the long run launch.”
Far more a short while ago, Spotify HiFi went unmentioned throughout the streamer’s next-quarter earnings connect with in late July.
We’ve considering that sent stick to-up inquiries, and we’ll update this story when and if we hear back.
We’ll also hold our ears peeled for the duration of Spotify’s future quarterly earnings simply call, slated for October 25.
How substantially will Spotify HiFi charge?
All over again, we do not know for confident, but in accordance to the “Spotify Platinum” rumor thorough previously mentioned, the purported survey pegged the selling price at $19.99 a thirty day period, or double the $9.99/month Spotify Personal system. Ouch.
Whilst Spotify has never ever appear out and claimed that HiFi would value further, the wording of its first announcement–“Premium subscribers in pick out marketplaces will be equipped to enhance their sound quality to Spotify HiFi”–suggests that HiFi is both an add-on or involved in a new program, these as the possible Spotify Platinum tier.
It’s also truly worth noting that Spotify tested CD-quality audio streams as early as 2017, and at that time, it charged an further $7.50 a month for the privilege.
When was Spotify HiFi supposed to occur out?
Spotify in no way gave a exact release day for Spotify HiFi, but throughout its 2021 announcement, it said the feature would arrive “later this year” in “select” marketplaces.
Of training course, it is reasonable to say that Spotify HiFi skipped its start window by a rather significant margin.
Why has not Spotify HiFi arrive out yet?
Good issue. Again in February, Spotify CEO Daniel Ed blamed “licensing” difficulties when requested about the destiny of Spotify HiFi through a organization earnings contact. Here’s the correct quotation, as reported by TechCrunch:
“Many of the features that we converse about and primarily which is connected to music ends up into licensing,” Ek instructed investors. “So I just cannot seriously announce any specifics on this other than to say that we’re in constant dialogue with our partners to convey this to marketplace.”
There is yet another rationale that Spotify might have delayed Spotify HiFi: for the reason that it received caught flat-footed by Apple and Amazon.
Just a few months right after the Spotify HiFi announcement, Amazon and Apple the two announced (independently, but on the identical working day) that they would commence supplying lossless, high-resolution, and spatial audio new music tracks, all for no more charge. (Apple was entirely new to lossless and spatial audio streaming, whilst Amazon experienced previously been charging added for lossless and spatial tracks.)
Next the Amazon and Apple bulletins, the prospect of paying further (most likely) for only CD-high-quality new music and (probably) no spatial audio began to drop its luster, so potentially Spotify selected to retreat and regroup.
Will Spotify HiFi give higher-resolution new music streaming?
Lots of Spotify’s streaming audio rivals, like Amazon Audio Unlimited, Apple New music, Qobuz, and Tidal, give “high-resolution” audio streaming–that is, audio that’s encoded at a higher resolution and sampling charge than CD-good quality 16-little bit/44.1kHz audio tracks.
Most industry kinds agree that 24-little bit/48kHz is the threshold for superior-resolution audio, and people streamers that guidance it provide large-res streams all the way up to 24-bit/192kHz.
But Spotify by no means explained anything at all about high-resolution audio in its original Spotify HiFi announcement all it promised was “CD-quality” audio, which qualifies as “hi-fi” but not “hi-res.”
As for the “Spotify Platinum” rumors, the purported survey helps make mention of a “Studio Sound” function in addition to HiFi. Could “Studio Sound” necessarily mean hello-res audio? Hmmm.
In any occasion, it’s a matter of heated debate whether the human ear can actually tell the big difference amongst CD-good quality and higher-resolution audio–or for that matter, irrespective of whether most individuals can discern the big difference between lossy and lossless. We will not dive into lossy-vs.-lossless rabbit hole below.
Will Spotify HiFi provide spatial audio?
As with high-resolution audio, Spotify never ever reported anything at all about spatial audio–that is, songs tracks that have been blended with 3D surround effects–in its Spotify HiFi announcement.
In the meantime, Spotify opponents Amazon Tunes, Apple Music, and Tidal do give spatial audio tracks in these formats as Dolby Atmos and Sony 360 Actuality Audio.
Once more, Spotify may well really have spatial audio plans in the works–and perhaps that’s what the “Studio Sound” and/or “Headphone Tuner” capabilities from the Spotify Platinum rumors are all about.
Will Spotify HiFi get cancelled?
Effectively, anything’s achievable, and Spotify has been identified to nix significant-profile capabilities that in no way very took off.
For illustration, Spotify recently pulled the plug on Car Detail, a small touchscreen screen that you could set up on a vehicle dashboard for on-the-road Spotify streaming.
For its component, Spotify said that though Auto Detail “worked as meant,” it chose to halt output of the $80 machine due to “product demand from customers and provide chain issues,” among the other elements.
Spotify also has a history of tests, teasing, and rolling out new options that later on disappear–or even reappear–without explanation.
But though Spotify seems eager to cancel functions that are not doing work, it also likes to experiment, and Spotify HiFi could be a job that Spotify is content to tinker with indefinitely.
For what it’s worth, the official Spotify HiFi announcement is however reside on Spotify’s web page.
Current on October 14, 2022 to incorporate new developments and assessment.