Pandora Increases Rates For Pandora One Subscription Services
If you've been thinking about subscribing to Pandora One, you'll want to make a decision sooner than later to avoid paying a higher price. Beginning in May, the cost of an ad-free Pandora One subscription is going up to $4.99 per month. That's a dollar more than what it costs now and it's intended to help offset rising costs, such as growing royalty rates.
"We’ve been fortunate to be able to offer Pandora One at an affordable price since its debut in 2009 at $36 per year and later with the introduction of a monthly subscription for only $3.99 per month. Over this same period, the costs of delivering this service have grown considerably," Pandora explained in a blog post. "For example, the royalty rates Pandora pays to performers via SoundExchange for subscription listening have increased 53 percent in the last five years and will increase another 9 percent in 2015."
Existing Pandora One subscribers needn't worry about the price hike, as they'll continue to pay $3.99 per month. The same goes for anyone who subscribers before May, so if you're on the fence, you have a little more than a month to make a decision before it's too late.
This isn't a nefarious move on Pandora's part. As the streaming provider points out, the costs of delivering millions of songs to a plethora of devices is only going up as artists and record labels demand a larger slice of the pie. In addition, Pandora said the price increase will only affect a small percentage of its listeners. Out of 250 million registered users, just 3.3 million are paying subscribers, all of which can continue to pay the current rate.
"We’ve been fortunate to be able to offer Pandora One at an affordable price since its debut in 2009 at $36 per year and later with the introduction of a monthly subscription for only $3.99 per month. Over this same period, the costs of delivering this service have grown considerably," Pandora explained in a blog post. "For example, the royalty rates Pandora pays to performers via SoundExchange for subscription listening have increased 53 percent in the last five years and will increase another 9 percent in 2015."
Existing Pandora One subscribers needn't worry about the price hike, as they'll continue to pay $3.99 per month. The same goes for anyone who subscribers before May, so if you're on the fence, you have a little more than a month to make a decision before it's too late.
This isn't a nefarious move on Pandora's part. As the streaming provider points out, the costs of delivering millions of songs to a plethora of devices is only going up as artists and record labels demand a larger slice of the pie. In addition, Pandora said the price increase will only affect a small percentage of its listeners. Out of 250 million registered users, just 3.3 million are paying subscribers, all of which can continue to pay the current rate.
