Spotify launches in the U.S.
- — 15 July, 2011 00:22
Spotify, the popular digital music streaming service available in Europe since 2008, launched on Thursday in the U.S., where music enthusiasts have been eagerly awaiting it.
"This is a great day for anyone who loves music in the U.S. and, of course, a real milestone for us at Spotify," the company said in a blog post.
In the U.S., Spotify is giving users three options for registering for the service. There is a free tier supported through advertising to which people have to submit a request to get an invitation. It gives users access to more than 15 million [m] songs, social sharing features, playlist management functionality and the ability to sync up with mobile phones or iPods.
The second tier, Spotity Unlimited, costs US$4.99 a month and includes all the features in the free service while doing away with the ads.
Finally, Spotify Premium, at $9.99 per month, extends the service with offline listening mode and beyond desktop computers to cellphones and other mobile devices, features better sound quality and includes special content.
Spotify reportedly closed a $100 million funding round last month which gave it a valuation of about $1 billion.
