Tag: alex norström

New Spotify Premium Duo Subscription Plan Launches in 55 Markets

July 1, 2020

You love Today’s Top Hits, yet your partner is obsessed with All Out 80s. So deciding who gets to play DJ at home or in the car is a constant battle. With Spotify Premium Duo, our new, first-of-its-kind subscription plan, couples can enjoy their favorite music—together and separately. 

Premium Duo is designed for audio-loving pairs living at the same address. Each individual gets their own Premium account under one plan in addition to unique benefits for couples for just $12.99 (or market equivalent) per month.

Video captures interviews with real-life couples

With the newly rolled-out Premium Duo, each fan gets their own individual Premium account so they can both fully enjoy the benefits of Spotify Premium. This includes ad-free, on-demand listening and our catalog of more than 50 million tracks, as well as access to over 1 million podcast titles. What’s more, Premium Duo subscribers can listen to their own playlists anytime, individually, uninterrupted, and get access to the exclusive Duo Mix, a regularly updated playlist made just for the two of them to discover audio they both love.


“Today we are proud to launch Spotify Premium Duo, a first-of-its-kind audio offering for just two people in the same household,” says Alex Norström, Spotify’s Chief Freemium Business Officer. “Premium Duo includes our extensive music and podcast catalog and everything users love about Spotify Premium. With two individual Premium accounts, you can both listen independently, uninterrupted, and get all of your personalized playlists and features tailored just for you. We are thrilled to bring this unique Spotify Premium plan to even more markets around the world.” 

A Spotify user study found that 73% of couples say they listen to music together as a way of remembering happy memories. A total of 63% say they listen to music together as a way of building their identity or creating memorable moments. Duo will let you do just that.

Users who haven’t tried Premium before may be eligible to get the first month of Premium Duo for free. Just remember, the two users must reside at the same address to be eligible.

Existing Premium subscribers can switch to Premium Duo by visiting their “Account” page on Spotify.com and changing their subscription. If you upgrade to Premium Duo, you’ll keep your existing Premium account, along with saved music, podcasts, playlists, and recommendations.

To sign up for a music experience to share with that special someone, simply visit spotify.com/duo and follow the instructions.

Introducing Spotify Kids, A New Standalone App for the Next Generation of Listeners

October 30, 2019

Spotify is committed to bringing audio content such as music and stories to more people in more ways–including the next generation of listeners. That’s why we decided to launch a fun standalone app designed with safety in mind specifically for kids and families.*

 

We sat down with Alex Norström, Spotify’s Chief Premium Business Officer, to learn a little more about the app. 

1. Why create a Spotify Kids app now? What can users look forward to?

We know that families love listening together—whether it’s while driving in the car or cooking dinner together in the kitchen. But we also know that family members love to listen on their own too. That’s why we’re so excited to welcome the next generation of listeners—kids—into the Family Plan experience. 

Kids consuming audio content, such as music and stories, isn’t a new phenomenon—in fact, they love it. But most audio experiences were built with adults in mind—meaning they’re not simple, easy, or fun for young kids to use. 

Spotify Kids was born out of the desire to create a playground of sound just for kids—to build a place where younger kids can explore their favorite music and stories in a fun environment. The content is ad-free and hand-picked by a team of editors, and the experience is bursting with color. Our visuals help guide young minds through the app with simple navigation and scaled-back text. Before setting out to explore, each kid can also select a custom avatar and color theme to personalize their experience. 

Spotify Kids is a composite of playlists, which makes it easy for kids to find music and stories from their favorite movies and TV shows or hit plays on a playlist to sing along to during their favorite activity—or their least favorite chore.  

We’re thrilled to beta launch in Ireland and look forward to introducing Spotify Kids in all markets that have Premium Family in the coming months. As we evolve the app experience, we’ll roll out enhanced parental settings and controls for even more customization in an effort to give parents peace of mind. 

2. How is the Spotify Kids app different from the original app? Any unique content?

Spotify Kids is a standalone app available exclusively for Premium Family subscribers and intended for kids ages 3+. The content within Kids is hand-picked by a team of editors, who have nearly 100 years of combined experience curating content for kids. They come from some of the most well-respected brands in this space, including Nickelodeon, Disney, Discovery Kids, and Universal Pictures, as well as Public Service in Sweden and BookBeat, which is a family- and kids-oriented audio streaming service.  

Beyond the content, the entire Spotify Kids user experience looks and feels different from the Spotify app. And that’s intentional. It’s built for kids, with their specific cognitive skills in mind, and exudes a fun, familiar, playful, and bright atmosphere. This look and feel also varies by age group—for example, the artwork for younger kids is softer and character-based, while content for older kids is more realistic and detailed. 

3. Why launch in beta? What are you hoping to learn? 

Having a standalone app specifically for younger kids is a new space for Spotify, and we understand the sensitivities around content for children. We are being very deliberate in our launch approach. We’ve started with a beta launch in Ireland, knowing that this initial roll-out phase will yield many learnings from parents, caregivers and other experts as they begin to interact with the app.

As we evolve the Spotify Kids experience over time, we plan to enhance parental control features to allow for even more customization. We’ll also bring our audio expertise to the table with listening experiences that go beyond music—like more stories and audiobooks and eventually podcasts.

4. As you were building the app, did you tap any external resources? Say, consult with any parent organizations or conduct focus groups?

While launching this kids app is an exciting moment for Spotify, creating it was not a task we took lightly. We knew the importance of understanding parents’ needs and making sure they would have peace of mind about the content their kids are consuming. 

Spotify has spent more than two years learning about this space, and we’ll continue to learn as people begin to interact with the app. We have gathered expert insight from a number of organizations, including the National Children’s Museum in Washington, D.C.,  and conducted our own studies with parents around the world and tapped into our Employee Resource Groups here at Spotify.

Spotify Kids is available starting today in Ireland. Ready to get started? Spotify Premium Family master account holders can simply download Kids from the App Store or Google Play, then sign in to their regular Spotify account. (If you’re new to Spotify, you’ll need to sign up for Premium Family before signing in to Spotify Kids.)

For those outside of Ireland, Kids will be rolling out to all markets that currently have Premium Family. Be sure to check back here for more or check out spotify.com/ie/kids.

*Update March 17, 2020: Spotify Kids has also rolled out in Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico.

Update February 11, 2020: Spotify Kids has also rolled out in the UK and Australia. 

Update November 27, 2019: Spotify Kids has also rolled out in Denmark, Sweden, and New Zealand.

Update May 12, 2020: Spotify Kids has also rolled out in Germany and Japan.

Why We’re Joining the Libra Association

June 18, 2019

Spotify has always focused on innovation that fosters greater accessibility. Since day one, we’ve worked to create a platform where fans can directly access the audio they want—at any time, anywhere, and at the right price—while also offering economic viability for creators.

This fundamental focus is why we believe in joining the Libra Association. Launching today, the independent, not-for-profit organization was founded to create a simple global currency and financial infrastructure that will empower billions of people. Called Libra, this reserve-backed currency, once created, will enable everyone, everywhere to send, spend, and save their money through a financial ecosystem powered by secure blockchain technology.

Libra offers massive opportunity for simple, convenient, and safe payment over the internet (particularly for the 1.7 billion adults worldwide without access to mobile money, a bank account, or a payment card). We’ve seen this directly in many of the developing markets where we operate.

As Alex Norström, our Chief Premium Business Officer, further explains:

“One challenge for Spotify and its users around the world has been the lack of easily accessible payment systems – especially for those in financially underserved markets. This creates an enormous barrier to the bonds we work to foster between creators and their fans. In joining the Libra Association, there is an opportunity to better reach Spotify’s total addressable market, eliminate friction and enable payments in mass scale.”

With a simple, global currency and financial infrastructure, the Libra Association will offer the opportunity to empower billions of people, making a truly lasting impact for both individuals and businesses alike.

Interested in learning more? Visit Libra.org for information about the Association, its Network, and currency.

Spotify Premium for Family Gets a New Family Member—A Google Home Mini

October 31, 2018

*Updated April 24, 2019: New and existing Premium for Family plan master account holders in Australia can now sign up for a Google Home Mini at https://www.spotify.com/us/family/ starting on 04/24. Note, this is a limited offer, only available for Australian Spotify Premium for Family users till May 14, 2019—so don’t wait.

*Updated March 18, 2019: New and existing Premium for Family plan master account holders in Great Britain and France can now sign up for a Google Home Mini at https://www.spotify.com/us/family/ starting on 03/18. Note, this is a limited offer, only available for Great Britain and France Spotify Premium for Family users till May 14, 2019—so don’t wait.

 

With the Spotify Premium for Family plan, families have unlimited access to the songs, playlists, and artists they love—and love to enjoy together. Starting tomorrow, we are teaming up with Google Home to give Spotify Premium for Family master account owners in the U.S. a Google Home Mini as part of their subscription. Now, music lovers across generations will be able to share their favorite music with the entire family, simply by asking their Google Home Mini powered by the Google Assistant.

Spotify Premium for Family subscribers already enjoy personalized Spotify accounts for up to six family members at only $14.99 per month. With Spotify Premium and Google Home partnering together to invest in voice, streaming your favorite songs and playlists has never been so easy. Once configured, Voice Match on Google Home can identify up to six people, meaning each person can enjoy a personalized experience. And it’s just the beginning.

“We’re excited to be partnering with Google Home to bring the magic of voice to our Spotify Premium Family subscribers. After all, what’s more fun than sharing the music you love with the people you love,” says Alex Norström, Chief Premium Business Officer. “For Family Plan subscribers, enjoying those moments will only get better. Now anytime their favorite artists comes up, they can simply say ‘Hey Google, turn it up!’

The Google Home Mini will be available for a limited time to Premium for Family plan master account holders in the U.S. at https://www.spotify.com/us/family/ starting on 11/1*. We’ve even streamlined the set-up to get you started and playing Spotify sooner.

To start listening, just say:
“Hey Google, play Spotify”
“Hey Google, resume Spotify”
“Hey Google, shuffle some music”
“Hey Google, play my Discover Weekly”
“Hey Google, play Dinner Party music”
“Hey Google, play Study music”
“Hey Google, play Hip Hop music”
“Hey Google, play my favorite music”
“Hey Google, play ‘Angel by Lionel Richie”

Then, when you’re in the zone, go:
“Hey Google, pause.”
“Hey Google, turn it up.”
“Hey Google, please quiet down.”
“Hey Google, like this song.”
“Hey Google, dislike this song.”
“Hey Google, skip forward 20 seconds.”
“Hey Google, skip backward one minute.”

And when you’re ready to discover more, try:
“Hey Google, play the next song.”
“Hey Google, what’s playing?
“Hey Google, who is this singer?”
“Hey Google, what’s this song?”
“Hey Google, what’s this album?”
Hey Google, when did this song come out?”

* New and existing Premium for Family plan master account holders can sign up for a Google Home Mini at https://www.spotify.com/us/family/ starting on 11/1. Note, this is a limited offer, only available for U.S. Spotify Premium for Family users till December 14, 2018—so don’t wait.

4 Questions (and Answers) with Chief Premium Business Officer Alex Norström About Spotify Premium for Students

September 5, 2018

It’s back-to-school season. For some, that means new backpacks, notebooks, pencils, and pens. It also means an upgraded version of Spotify Premium for Students. Now, in addition to Spotify Premium’s millions of songs and podcasts and Hulu’s hours of next-day entertainment content, student subscribers will also have access to SHOWTIME’s full suite of premium storytelling content.

So whether you study to music or the sounds of silence, write essays on the difference between Hulu’s Emmy award-winning series The Handmaid’s Taleand Margaret Atwood’s novel, or unwind with SHOWTIME’s Shameless, there’s something for every student to stream.

We sat down with Alex Norström, Chief Premium Business Officer, Spotify, to learn a little more about the partnership.

Q: Spotify Premium already has a student plan. What’s new in this bundle?

A: Until now, our Premium for Students subscription included Spotify Premium and Hulu for only $4.99 a month. Yet we saw that it was widely successful with students, so we sought a way to offer them even more. That’s how we decided to add the SHOWTIME streaming service to our Spotify Premium for Students plan at no additional cost. We’re talking about original series, films, documentaries, sports, and more for the same low price. That’s helping U.S. college students access more premium content than ever—a “stream come true.”

Q: What is Spotify Premium trying to achieve with this change?

A: We realized that there are certain users who aren’t prepared to pay for just a music service, for a variety of reasons. We want to create a meaningful relationship with these potential users, many of whom are younger. But we also found that, when this music service, Spotify Premium, is enriched with other services, like Hulu and SHOWTIME, users are prepared and even willing to pay. Bundling, or providing multiple services in one, lets us increase the value of our Spotify Premium for Students plan beyond our core audio offering.

Additionally, we are always looking for partners and opportunities that share and show our values. Working with others has shown to help drive growth, which in turn allows us to improve our margins, attract new users, and improve retention and user satisfaction of the Premium subscription. It’s good for us, and it allows us to provide unparalleled content for our users.

Our current partnership with Hulu has been an overwhelming success for both of us. Originally, it was a creative way to add value back to our Premium subscribers. Now, our focus is on the long-term relationship with each subscriber. If we do the right thing, they reward us with loyalty. In turn, we innovate more for them.

Q: Why should students be excited?

A: Spotify Premium for Students, now with both Hulu and SHOWTIME, gives college students unprecedented, on-demand access to a complete world of music and video content, shows and film—all in one convenient package. This latest offer for U.S. students—both the millions already on Spotify Premium and those who are new—really is huge. Never before have students had this level of streaming entertainment options, at this unprecedented value, all in one package.

Q: How has response to the announcement been so far?

A: We’re excited to report that we have seen consistently positive responses, both internally and externally. The initial feedback has been promising, which suggests that students are really receptive to the plan. I enjoy the conversation on Twitter, where some students have called Spotify “undefeated.” It shows that we’re committed to providing them with even more content to love.

It doesn’t matter if you’re already a Spotify Premium for Students user or are new to the class: sign up and start streaming Spotify Premium, Hulu, and SHOWTIME at spotify.com/student.