Spotify HiFi lossless audio format announced; launching later this year in select markets

Spotify India | Representative Image

Spotify has announced a HiFi audio upgrade for its subscribers. The Spotify HiFi is a lossless tier that will be the company’s premium subscription. Spotify said that HiFi audio would be available later this year in select markets.

The company claims that the new HiFi tier will offer CD-quality audio on existing devices. Users will be able to experience more depth and clarity while enjoying their favourite tracks. The service will be rolled out later this year. Spotify did not reveal the exact timeline. It will launch Spotify HiFi in select markets.

Spotify joins the likes of Tidal and Amazon Music who have launched hi-fi audio subscriptions. However, the latter two services do not offer their Hi-Fi audio services in India. Spotify could be the first major audio streaming service to launch the lossless audio feature in the country.

Spotify’s growth in India has been driven by its Spotify Premium Mini, where for Rs 7 or 25 users can have daily or weekly subscriptions to ad-free music and download up to 30 songs on a device. It added 25 million users in the December quarter with India being a significant contributor to growth.

Spotify’s total monthly active users (MAUs) grew 27 percent year-on-year (YoY), from 271 million in the fourth quarter of 2019 to 345 million users in the fourth quarter of 2020. Its premium users grew 24 percent YoY from 124 to 155 million while ad-supported usage grew from 153 to 199 million YoY.