news Amazon Music Follows Spotify’s Lead With Price Hikes and Bundled Plans

[Music Info]

Amazon Music Unlimited has raised its prices in the U.S., with Prime members now paying $10.99 per month (a $1 increase) and non-Prime members paying $11.99. Family plans jumped to $19.99 monthly, with changes hitting existing subscribers after March 5.

Another day, another streaming price hike. At this rate, is any service actually worth its cost anymore?

Amazon Music Unlimited has also separated its audiobook-equipped plans from a new “Amazon Music Standard” option, which seems to retain old pricing but lacks audiobook access. This move mirrors Spotify’s bundling strategy, which has major implications for songwriter and publisher royalties.

Splitting plans like this feels sneaky. Do you think it's fair for music creators, or just another way for streaming services to save money?

Spotify recently classified 99% of its U.S. subscriptions as bundles, reducing the royalties it pays for music. Amazon Music is now taking a similar route, with only about 20% of its subscribers currently on bundled plans—but that number could rise.

Streaming services keep finding new ways to cut costs at the expense of artists. It’s hard not to feel like musicians are getting the short end of the stick.

Amazon’s recent moves, including a new deal with Universal Music Group, suggest further changes in how royalties will be handled. It remains to be seen if this shift will trigger industry-wide adjustments like Spotify’s bundling strategy did.

Source: https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2025/01/30/amazon-music-price-increases-january-2025/

 

[1stop]

That's a good one! Universal Music Group may shake up the music streaming landscape with its new deal because the idea of leaving royalties to be done differently is a welcome development. I’m also interested to see what Apple Music and Google Play Music have in store us.

 

[Reelz]

Streaming is king, and we need to get artists incredibly remunerated for the work they do. I want Amazon to do artists right, where they can also get compensated for the work they do. They should set a good example for the rest of the industry.

 

[Unvarnished]

What this big streaming services fail to understand is that the consumer impact counts as well. They shouldn't chase us away with price hike because of Amazon's pricing hikes and bundling are getting out of hand. I’m curious on if there are additional benefits and greater music libraries good enough to add to what we previously get.

 

[Lord Severus]

YouTube music is only catching up. So is Amazon.

However, being a oligopoly, the effects of one company, like the dominoe effect, must reflect on the pricing policies of all other members in the oligopoly.

Thankfully, in my country, these services are bundled with our internet connection so that I get to enjoy them.