Streaming prices drop – Apple Music and Co score with HD sound

Dance around your living room with headphones on and feel like you’re on the edge of the stage. Apple Music says Dolby Atmos allows artists to mix music so that the sound comes from everywhere. Revolutionary and immersive, this is a magical audio experience.

Starting June 1, Apple is integrating these HD formats into its standard pricing ($9.99/month).

Amazon Music is also announcing HD sound at no additional cost to consumers. However, troubling for artist*s and labels is that the price for existing subscriptions to Amazon Music Unlimited HD will be reduced by $5 per month.

But the global tech giants are not doing this altruistically, of course, and so that all consumers* really can enjoy the HD sound. Apple Music commented: “By default, Apple Music will automatically play Dolby Atmos tracks on all AirPods and Beats headphones with an H1 or W1 chip, as well as on the built-in speakers in the latest versions of iPhone, iPad and Mac.” And Amazon also stated, “Listeners can … Stream 3D (audio) mixes when listening on Amazon’s breakthrough high-fidelity smart speaker, Echo Studio.”

For Amazon and Apple, who make money more easily from HD hardware than from HD audio subscriptions, it makes perfect sense to up-sell HD audio. For musicians and labels, however, this development is a significant step backwards. Just recently, Spotify announced small price increases for its monthly subscription in key markets like the UK, Brazil and the US. It’s a development that has cost music rights holders a fair bit of work. The music industry is losing real revenue (Amazon’s HD price cut).

Jimmy Iovine was right when he said, “All streaming services are the same.” Because that will be the result, as platforms give in to downward pressure to offer consumers* the lowest price. True to the motto: one-price-fits all.

The price decline that the music industry is threatened with in the coming years could be stopped by a high-priced premium HD tier. At the same time, the benchmark must be set for what music, in its best experienceable form, is worth.