Tidal Simplifies Subscription Model, Merges Premium Features into $11 Plan

In a bid to streamline its subscription tiers and supply extra aggressive pricing, Tidal, the music streaming service owned by Square, has introduced vital modifications to its subscription plans. Effective April 10, Tidal will consolidate its premium options, together with lossless, hi-res, and spatial audio content material, right into a single $11 per 30 days particular person plan.

Key Takeaways: 

• Tidal is simplifying its subscription tiers, merging its premium options right into a single plan priced at $11 per 30 days.
• The earlier HiFi and HiFi Plus subscription tiers, priced at $20 per 30 days, can be discontinued.
• Subscribers may have entry to lossless, hi-res, and spatial audio content material, together with Dolby Atmos, throughout the $11 plan.
• Tidal’s resolution to streamline its choices brings it in step with rivals like Apple Music and Amazon Music, which additionally supply all accessible content material inside a single paid subscription.
• Existing clients on discontinued plans, resembling Military/First Responder plans, can retain their subscriptions till June 10, 2024.

Previously, Tidal supplied separate subscription tiers, with its HiFi and HiFi Plus plans priced at $20 per 30 days, offering entry to hi-res lossless and spatial audio codecs resembling Dolby Atmos and Sony 360 Reality Audio. However, with the upcoming modifications, these tiers can be discontinued, and all premium content material can be included within the $11 per 30 days plan.

This transfer aligns Tidal’s providing extra carefully with rivals like Apple Music and Amazon Music, each of which supply all accessible content material inside a single paid subscription. It marks a departure from Tidal’s earlier technique, the place it differentiated itself via its higher-priced premium tiers and unique streaming codecs.

One of the numerous shifts in Tidal’s technique occurred in 2023 when the corporate introduced plans to section out its library of music within the MQA format, opting as an alternative for the open-source FLAC format. This resolution eradicated one of many few options that set Tidal aside from its rivals. 

As of December 2023, Tidal reported that its hi-res FLAC catalog is 4 occasions bigger than its MQA catalog and continues to develop, with a median of 200,000 new hi-res tracks added every week.

Following the consolidation of its subscription tiers, Tidal will supply three principal plans: the $11 per 30 days particular person plan, a $17 per 30 days household plan accommodating as much as six members of the family, and a reduced $5 per 30 days pupil plan. All three plans will present full entry to Tidal’s intensive library of over 110 million tracks in lossless audio, HiRes FLAC, and Dolby Atmos.

For customers who want to entry Tidal’s library through software- and hardware-based DJ instruments, an extra payment of $9 per 30 days can be required.

While Tidal is simplifying its subscription mannequin to match its rivals, the corporate has additionally discontinued its discounted Military/First Responder plans. However, present clients on these plans will be capable of retain their subscriptions till June 10, 2024.

With Tidal’s focus now on providing a extra accessible and aggressive subscription mannequin, consideration shifts to Spotify, which stays one of many few main streaming companies with out choices for lossless, hi-res, or spatial audio content material. 

Despite Spotify’s repeated guarantees of a HiFi tier, no launch date has been introduced, leaving Tidal, Apple Music, and Amazon Music because the main contenders within the high-quality audio streaming market.

The submit Tidal Simplifies Subscription Model, Merges Premium Features into $11 Plan first appeared on My Site and is written by Nemanja Grbic