Spotify may finally be ready to debut a premium HiFi audio tier

Rumors about a Spotify HiFi tier have been around since at least 2017, and the company even announced plans to launch such a feature in 2021 — only to back off the next year. Now, the company may finally be ready to launch a high-fidelity plan (dubbed "Supremium" internally) that would be its most expensive tier, according to Bloomberg. The aim would be to drive more revenue and address investor demands that it raise its prices. Spotify reportedly delayed rolling out the plan back in 2021 as two of its primary rivals, Apple Music and Amazon Music, started including the feature for no charge in their standard plans.  In addition, Spotify may enhance its regular Premium offering with expanded audiobook access, either through a certain number of free hours per month or a specific number of books (with an option to purchase more). Audiobooks are currently only available on Spotify via individual purchases. There's no word on whether audio would be lossless at up to 24-bit and 192kHz, as it is on Apple Music and Amazon Music. Lossless audio generally doesn't work on Bluetooth speakers or headphones (including Apple's AirPods and AirPods Max), due to the high bandwidth, so users need a wired or WiFi setup.Pricing hasn't been revealed, either. Spotify has kept its Premium plan at $9.99/month in the US, unlike Apple and Amazon, which raised their rates to $10.99. CEO Daniel Ek said in a recent earnings call that the company tries to balance subscriber growth with revenue, so... Continue reading at 'Engadget'

[ Engadget | 2023-06-20 12:38:47 UTC ]
News tagged with: #apple music #audiobook

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Is Pearson ready for March break? Go behind the scenes at Canada's busiest airport

With air travel rebounding as pandemic restrictions ease, Toronto’s Pearson International Airport is busier than ever — but it’s been a rocky restart with flight delays and cancellations, long lines and lost luggage. CBC News gets an inside look... Continue reading at CBC

[ CBC | 2023-03-10 09:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #pearson #cbc news #flight delays #busiest airport #march break


A Debut Novel Creates a World From Pages Taken From the Past

When Alice Winn stumbled on the archives of her British boarding school’s newspaper, she discovered a world, only to see it “destroyed and dismantled” during World War I. She brought it back in her novel, “In Memoriam.” Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-03-05 14:54:05 UTC ]
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Spotify is ditching the heart icon for an dual-purpose plus button

Spotify is waving goodbye to its heart icon. The company is combining the icon, which enables you to quickly save music to your library, with the "add to playlist" prompt under a single plus button.The plus button works a little differently on Spotify than it does on Apple Music, where tapping... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-02-27 18:15:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #audiobook #coming weeks #radio station #apple music


New Report Puts Online Sales of Books, Audio at $12.13 Billion in 2022

According to Bookstat, a service that collects online sales data in real time from Amazon, Apple, and Barnes & Noble across the e-book, digital audiobook, and print book formats, total online sales of those formats rose 5.6% in 2022, to $12.13 billion. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-15 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Actress Chrissy Metz Talks to God in a Debut Kids' Book

Chrissy Metz, best known for her role on TV series 'This is Us,' introduces young readers to God as "a warm, safe light" in ‘When I Talk to God, I Talk About You.' Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-13 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Zibby Books Makes Its Debut

Leading bookfluencer and budding book business entrepreneur Zibby Owens discusses the newly launched Zibby Books; her first bookstore, Zibby’s Bookshop, which will open in Santa Monica, Calif., this month; and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
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That long-promised, official Barbra Streisand memoir is finally getting published

'My Name Is Barbra,' the memoir that superstar Barbra Streisand said she's been working on for more than a decade, will be published this fall. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-02-08 20:02:43 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #memoir


ChatGPT is suddenly everywhere. Are we ready?

For a product that its own creators, in a marketing pique, once declared “too dangerous” to release to the general public, OpenAI’s ChatGPT is seemingly everywhere these days. The versatile automated text generation (ATG) system, which is capable of outputting copy that is nearly... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-02-03 18:00:31 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #digital media #terrible things #end user #data protection #data privacy #digital distribution #knowledge workers


'Star Wars: Visions' Volume 2 debuts May 4th with an Aardman short

Star Wars: Visions is returning for a second 'season,' this time with a more international scope — including a studio you might not have expected. Disney has announced that Star Wars: Visions Volume 2 will premiere May 4th (aka Star Wars Day) with shorts from nine countries, including one from... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-02-02 15:41:49 UTC ]
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Penguin Random House Audio Acquires Playaway Products

Penguin Random House Audio has acquired Playaway Products, a producer of physical audio players and tablets preloaded with content. Launched in 2005 and based in Solon, Ohio, the company offers 36,000 titles and works with some 40,000 libraries and institutions. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-02 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Do box sets matter in the Spotify era?

Musicians and studios put loads of time and money into special edition commemorative releases, most of which will never be experienced by listeners. From The Velvet Underground to Joni Mitchell, it seems everyone is rolling out a special edition box set these days. Just look at the last few... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2023-01-28 03:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #hardcover book #early november #joni mitchell


Meet the Champion of Debut Authors

If you are a debut author or a literary fiction and nonfiction stan, you’ve likely heard of Debutiful. Adam Vitcavage launched the podcast and website dedicated to highlighting the work of debut authors in January 2019. It has since become a beacon in the literary community, helping over 100,000... Continue reading at Electric Literature

[ Electric Literature | 2023-01-18 12:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #debut author #literary fiction #electric literature #literary community #website dedicated #debut authors #post meet


Digital Book World 2023: The Future of AI Writing and Audio

According to multiple presenters at the Digital Book World conference, ChatGPT has potential to remake the way people write and streamline production and editing, while AI voice replication promises affordable audiobook adaptations. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-01-17 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #book world #digital book #audiobook #streamline production #people write #multiple presenters #ai writing


Digital Book World 2023: The Future of AI Writing and Audio

According to multiple presenters at the Digital Book World conference, ChatGPT has potential to remake the way people write and streamline production and editing, while AI voice replication promises affordable audiobook adaptations. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-01-17 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #book world #digital book #audiobook #streamline production #people write #multiple presenters #ai writing


Abcarian: Privileged, tormented, and finally, liberated: Prince Harry unshackles himself from the royal family

Prince Harry's memoir "Spare" is gracious, harsh, self-pitying, self-deprecating and, ultimately, self-aware. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-01-14 11:00:18 UTC ]
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The Final Fantasy 'Pixel Remaster' series heads to Switch and PS4 next spring

Square Enix’s “pixel perfect” remasters of the first six Final Fantasy games will arrive on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 next spring, the publisher announced on Monday. First announced at E3 2021 and subsequently released on PC and mobile over the course of that same year, the Final Fantasy... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2022-12-19 17:30:26 UTC ]
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LibLearnX Set to Debut In-Person Event in New Orleans

The library community is set to gather for the first-ever in-person edition of the ALA’s nascent winter event, LibLearnX: The Library Learning Experience, set for January 27–30, 2023, at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-12-09 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #in-person edition #library community


LibLearnX Set to Debut In-Person Event In New Orleans

The library community is set to gather for the first-ever in-person edition of the ALA’s nascent winter event, LibLearnX: The Library Learning Experience, set for January 27–30, 2023, at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-12-09 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #in-person edition #library community


Harlequin Teams Up With Audio Up to Adapt 52 Romance Titles Into Scripted Podcasts

Audio production company Audio Up Media and book publishing house Harlequin Enterprises are teaming up to adapt 52 of the publisher's romance titles into scripted podcast series, with an eye to also turn these into--more highly monetizable--TV series. Audio Up, also home to mental health and... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2022-12-06 12:42:46 UTC ]
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Louise Kennedy’s Debut Novel Taps Into Her Childhood Amid the Troubles

The book, “Trespasses,” captures the texture of life in Northern Ireland — details, objects and images that carry “incredible emotional weight.” Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2022-10-31 16:21:50 UTC ]
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