Amazon has just launched Amazon Music HD in the US, UK, Germany, and Japan. It offers 50 million lossless HD songs, with a bit depth of 16 bits and a sample rate of 44.1kHz (described by Amazon as “CD quality”).
In addition, Amazon Music HD subscribers can stream “millions more” songs in ‘Ultra HD’ (described by Amazon as “better than CD quality”), with a bit depth of 24 bits and a sample rate up to 192 kHz.
It will cost existing Amazon Prime members $12.99 (US) / £12.99 (UK) a month and non-Prime members $14.99 / $14.99 a month.
Existing Amazon Music Unlimited subscribers can upgrade for an additional $5 / £5 a month.
Yesterday's launch brings a new tier of quality – and pricing – to Amazon’s service.
- Users of Alexa-enabled devices can access an ad-supported music service, offering radio ‘stations’ or Amazon Music playlists for free;
- Those who are already Prime members ($119 per year in the US) can also access a limited on-demand catalog of over 2 million songs via Prime Music;
- Those who own an Echo speaker can subscribe to Amazon Music Unlimited (50m-plus songs, all on-demand) for just $3.99 per month via an ‘Echo Plan’, but their account will be locked to their speaker;
- A full Amazon Music Unlimited subscription – available on multiple devices, and a direct rival to Apple Music or Spotify Premium – costs $9.99 per month, or $7.99for existing Prime members. A Family Plan for up to six users costs $14.99 per month;
- And a subscription to Amazon Music HD now costs $14.99 a month, or $12.99 a month for Prime members. An HD Family Plan costs $19.99 per month.
Amazon says that Amazon Music HD will play “the highest quality audio the customer’s device and network conditions will support”, and is compatible with a wide variety of devices, including desktop, mobile (iOS & Android), select Echo devices, Fire TV, and Fire Tablets.
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