The gap in available amenities between Spotify‘s free users and paid subscribers is about to grow even larger, as the music streaming platform has solidified a new deal with Universal Music Group to grant paid subscribers an even more significant advantage with their monthly subscription. The new deal provides artists of Universal Music Group the option to make their albums exclusive to only paid subscribers for a limited time. Free users will have to wait two weeks after an album’s release to hear the newest tunes.
In addition to this new feature, the agreement also grants Universal Music Group with unprecedented access to data, generating the ability to form new tools for artists and labels to engage with fans.
Upon the introduction of this momentous agreement, Spotify CEOÂ Daniel Ek, stated:
“This partnership is built on a mutual love of music, creating value for artists and delivering for fans. We will be working together to help break new artists and connect new and established artists with a broadening universe of fans in ways that will wow them both. We know that not every album by every artist should be released the same way, and we’ve worked hard with UMG to develop a new, flexible release policy. Starting today, Universal artists can choose to release new albums on premium only for two weeks, offering subscribers an earlier chance to explore the complete creative work, while the singles are available across Spotify for all our listeners to enjoy.”
