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Spotify Discreetly Shifts Lyrics Behind a Paid Subscription
May 3, 2024
Spotify has supposedly scoped out a new method to shift its free users behind a paywall. Lyrics have been secretly moved behind a paid subscription. After many reports stemming from annoyed posts by users on Reddit, the digital music giant discretely confirmed the move without a direct announcement.
The digital music streaming platform had been showing signs of moving in this direction, but last fall, the company was discovered to be restricting access to lyrics for users who didn’t pay. When free users attempted to use the feature, they were greeted with a message saying, “Enjoy lyrics on Spotify Premium.”
However, a Spotify spokesperson said at the time that the changes were “only a test” that was in motion with a restricted amount of users in a “pair of markets.” Spotify has put a stop to labeling the changes as a test, but it continues to remain unclear as to why it hasn’t officially labeled lyric access as a premium feature on its website, such as on the upgrade page or in its help resources. This secrecy of this move might be due to ongoing testing of the monthly lyric limit for free accounts. Users without subscriptions have posted on Twitter sharing that each time they access lyrics, it contributes to the new limit.
Spotify hasn’t revealed any more information on the reasons why it’s now putting lyrics behind a paywall, but it seems evident that it is a way to shift more users to its paid model. The company hit over 600 million monthly active users in February, exceeding predictions in the first quarter of this year, with paid memberships reaching over 236 million, marking a 15% year-over-year increase.
On the flip side, quarterly revenue didn’t meet expectations by analysts of 3.72 billion euros and instead came in at 3.67 billion ($3.94 billion).
It’s yet to be seen whether the decision to block lyrics will drive more subscriptions. Lyrics are readily accessible and free through various platforms outside of Spotify, such as Genius, Apple’s Shazam, or Musixmatch, among others.
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