STOCKHOLM, June 4 ― Swedish streaming service Spotify said yesterday that it was raising its prices for premium subscribers in the United States for the second time in under a year.

The company said in a statement it was hiking prices so "we can continue to invest in and innovate on our product features and bring users the best experience”.

The new monthly subscription prices will be introduced "over the next month”, it said, with an individual subscription going up by US$1 (RM4.69) to US$11.99.

A duo subscription will now cost US$16.99 and a family subscription US$19.99, while a student subscription will remain unchanged at US$5.99.

In July 2023, Spotify announced it was raising its prices for premium subscribers "across a number of markets around the world,” following similar moves by competing music services from Apple and Amazon.

In April, Spotify reported a rare operating profit for the first quarter of €168 million, a turnaround from a loss of €156 million in the period a year earlier.

It said the business had "performed well” in the quarter, "led by healthy subscriber gains, improved monetisation and record strength in profitability”.

Spotify said it had 615 million active users at the end of the first quarter, of which 230 million were paying subscribers.

The company has invested heavily since its launch to fuel growth with expansions into new markets and, in recent years, exclusive content such as podcasts.

Despite its success in the online music market, it has never posted a full-year net profit and only occasionally quarterly profits.

In December, it said it would cut staff levels by around 17 per cent in a bid to reduce costs, which followed earlier layoffs announced in January and June of 2023. ― ETX Studio