Spotify has announced that free users will once again have access to lyrics for any song they listen to on the platform. This decision comes after the company faced backlash earlier this year for limiting access to lyrics for non-paying users.
In May, Spotify started testing a feature that required a paid subscription to view lyrics, limiting free users to only three songs with lyrics per month. However, the company has now decided to remove this restriction, allowing all users to view unlimited lyrics without any cap.
A spokesperson for Spotify stated, “At Spotify, we’re always testing and iterating. This means availability of our features can vary across tiers and between markets and devices. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be expanding Lyrics availability for Spotify Free users so more people can enjoy viewing more lyrics, globally.”
The initial move to restrict lyrics access for free users was seen as a strategy to encourage more people to upgrade to the paid subscription tiers, which start at $11 a month. However, CEO Daniel Ek mentioned during the recent earnings call that plans were underway to enhance the free user experience, with bringing back full access to lyrics being one of the updates.
“We are prioritizing enhancements in our free product pipeline that based on existing performance in certain markets. Further additional improvements will be integrated into our free experience in the coming months,” Ek explained.
This decision to bring back free user access to lyrics is sure to please many Spotify users who rely on the feature to sing along to their favorite songs. By making lyrics available to all users, Spotify is not only improving the user experience but also staying competitive in the music streaming industry.
It will be interesting to see how this change impacts user engagement and retention on the platform. With more updates planned for the free user experience in the coming months, Spotify is clearly focused on catering to the needs of all its users, whether they pay for a subscription or not.
