In May 2024, Spotify announced that it would allow free users to view the lyrics of only three songs per month. Apparently, the move was aimed at getting more listeners to sign up for its premium subscription that comes with full access to lyrics. The change received huge disapproval among Spotify’s free consumers.
Hundreds flocked to social media to express their displeasure at no longer being able to quickly find their favorite song lyrics as easily as before. In the face of this backlash, Spotify is now walking back on that decision. The company confirmed with me this week that in the coming weeks, they will indeed make the lyrics feature more available for free members globally. The new specific limits were not spelled out, but clearly, more songs now can have their text viewed without charge.
Its lyrics feature has been an extremely popular interactive addition since launching in late 2021, available to all users regardless of whether they had a subscription or not. Spotify had started testing a paywall for access to lyrics as far back as last September, according to reports. Intended to drive revenue, it’s not clear that it would meaningfully move the needle on premium conversions by limiting this convenient option for casual listeners.
Backtracking on this three-song limit indicates the move did not have the desired effect on user growth. Spotify still is the dominant music streaming player across the globe. During the latest quarter, its paying user base jumped 12% year over year to 246 million. In total, monthly activities—including free users—were up 14% to 626 million. This means, that despite this short-lived misstep in their free tier offering mix, the firm retains tremendous allure.
