Spotify users in the US were lucky enough to avoid the streaming giant’s latest price hike. Instead of charging families more, Spotify, in the US, is bringing more ways for families to share the joy of audiobooks.
For reference, Spotify currently gives Premium users 15 hours of audiobook listening time per month. Users in the US can now pay $11.99 on top of their monthly plan to gain an additional 15 hours with Audiobooks+ — and the best thing is that the extra allotment extends across all members of a Family or Duo plan.
Audiobooks+ is a recurring add-on available only to Spotify Premium account holders. Unlike the $9.99 Spotify Audiobooks Access plan, it can not be purchased by non-Premium users. The whole point of the new plan is to give audiobook enthusiasts more hours, and in turn, more flexibility to discover and explore authors and titles.
The new Audiobooks+ plan was previously limited to users in the U.K., Australia, New Zealand, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein.
Will you pay the extra $12?
The new plan marks the first time Spotify Premium users will be able to share their audiobook listening time with others on the same Family or Duo plan. Users have the option to opt for the Audiobooks+ plan if they want the extra hour just for themselves, while the similarly-named Audiobooks+ for Family Members plan allows the primary user to share those extra hours with other family members.
“Plan members just need to request audiobook access from their plan manager, who can purchase the add-on on their behalf. They can also purchase a one-time 10-hour top-up if they run out of hours before their monthly billing cycle refreshes,” wrote Spotify in its original blog post announcing the plan.
Do you think an additional 15 hours of audiobook listening time is worth spending an extra $12 per month, or would you rather just rent a book from a different platform? Let us know in the comments below.
