Spotify is planning to introduce features that will allow users to remix songs for themselves directly in the platform, with the streaming payments still going to rightsholders for the original songs.
As detailed in a new report by the Wall Street Journal, Spotify is currently looking at introducing new music-manipulating tools, including options to slow down, speed up, mash together, and “otherwise edit” songs. Once a user creates their modified track, they can share it to “virtual collections” on Spotify, but won’t be able to share it on any other platform.
The move comes in response to the impact TikTok has had on the streaming industry. In February, Pex shared a report that found that over a third of the total songs on the platform were speed or pitch modified in some way (38.03% as of 2023, a 13% increase from the previous year). Controversially, the modified nature of those tracks allows many of them to bypass TikTok’s copyright protections, was has led to an ongoing dispute with Universal Music Group and other rightsholders.
According to the WSJ story, Spotify is hoping that their remixing tools, with built-in measures to ensure that rightsholders receive their due, will “appeal to young users, while generating new revenue for artists.”
As of now, “discussions about the tools are early and licensing agreements have yet to be worked out,” though it appears that the basic remix tools will be available to all Premium subscribers. Additionally, “more-advanced song-modification” tools may be available to those who pay a higher, $19.99-a-month subscription, which could also offer 24-bit Lossless audio.
Read the full report by WSJ here.
In other Spotify news, the platform recently announced that they will once again raise their Premium subscription rates in several key markets, like the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and more. Subscribers can expect rates to go up by $1 per month for individual plans and $2 per month for duo or family plans at some point in the future. But hey, at least subscribers can stream Neil Young and Joni Mitchell again.