Spotify’s New 30-hour Audiobook Plans Are Too Short To Finish Long Books

Spotify has launched two caller Audiobooks Plus add-on subscriptions that let Premium users to double their audiobook listening limit to 30 hours. They’re disposable to individual Premium subscribers and users who negociate Family and Duo plans. Other users connected Premium accounts tin now besides petition 15 hours of audiobook entree from their scheme manager. However, nan caller plans are still excessively short for those who for illustration to perceive to longer books.

The 30-hour limit won’t get you done titles for illustration George R. R. Martin’s A Game of Thrones aliases Brandon Sanderson’s The Way of Kings, for example. You could perceive to 2 aliases 3 smaller novels instead, but if you want to re-listen to them successful nan future, you’ll person to sacrifice those hours again. And you tin hide astir buying books to get astir these issues — immoderate audiobook included successful Premium isn’t disposable for Premium subscribers to purchase. 

I scoured done Spotify’s audiobook listings to find thing I could bargain arsenic a Premium subscriber and came up pinch nothing. By comparison, Audible’s $14.95 premium scheme gives users an full free book each period that they tin support forever, and often has titles connected waste for acold little than nan value of Spotify’s time-based top-ups. The payouts that Spotify gives to authors are reportedly amended than what Audible pays, but it sucks that Spotify makes it truthful difficult to support authors straight pinch purchases.

These add-ons are presently only disposable for Spotify Premium users successful nan UK, Australia, New Zealand, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and nan Netherlands, pursuing first tests successful Ireland and Canada. Pricing will alteration by region. In nan UK, some Audiobook add-ons are priced astatine £8.99 (about $12, which could double nan $11.99 individual Premium scheme pricing successful nan US). 

Spotify will yet present akin plans to nan US, according to TechCrunch, though users successful that region already person nan action to acquisition 10-hour audiobook top-ups for $12.99. The main perk present is convenience — these rolling add-on subscriptions will automatically let Premium users to perceive to 30 hours of audiobooks each period without needing to bargain top-ups. A Spotify spokesperson wasn’t instantly disposable to remark connected really galore users presently perceive to complete 15 hours of audiobooks.

The 15 hours provided to Premium subscribers is simply a “nice to have” if you besides watercourse euphony connected nan platform, particularly if you only perceive to a fistful of shorter book titles each month. Spotify besides has a $9.99 audiobook-only Premium plan that provides 15 hours of listening pinch nary euphony perks if you for illustration to perceive to your tunes elsewhere.