A bold move from Spotify took place years ago to boycott Apple's App Store commission rates, but now, it is seeing a larger effect as the company is removing iOS paid subscribers from the Premium tier at the end of their current cycle. This means that if one's subscription is set to expire, it will no longer renew to Premium and would only be a Free account.
Users would need to re-subscribe to Spotify Premium this time around, and they will be directed to third-party payment channels that do not charge the same way Apple does.
Spotify is Removing Paid iOS Subscribers from Premium
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Variety reported that users who are still using iOS and the App Store's payment channels for their Spotify Premium subscription are getting emails from the company that advises them to look for alternatives. The email explains that Apple is no longer a valid payment method and would not support this despite iOS users paying a larger fee.
For a long time now, Spotify has been charging Apple users more than its regular monthly or annual subscription for its Premium tier. This covers the 30 percent commission rate that goes to Apple for every purchase.
After the end of the subscription cycle, Spotify would no longer renew their subscription and push them into a Free account.
Read Also: Spotify Pulls Audiobooks on Apple iOS for iPhones: Here's Why
App Store Payment No Longer Accepted for Spotify
According to 9to5 Mac, iOS legacy subscribers are booted from their Premium experience and would have to manually re-subscribe to the ad-free music streaming experience. This was never experienced before, as the subscription automatically renews and would only require this if users want to unsubscribe from Spotify.
(Photo : Imtiyaz Ali from Unsplash)
That being said, users are advised to choose their preferred payment channel that does not have anything to do with Apple, to bypass its 30 percent commission rate.
Spotify vs. Apple
The beef against Apple started a long time ago for Spotify, and they were amongst the largest companies in the world that denounces the Cupertino giant's massive 30 percent cut from in-app purchases and subscriptions. That being said, it was reported that back when Apple Music was launching its subscription platform, Spotify was behind what pushed the FTC investigations to take place.
Tech executives of different backgrounds including Twitter's Elon Musk and Spotify's Daniel Elk have been vocal about Apple's "absurd" commission rates for the App Store, with the infamous 70-30 split. While a majority of the pay cut comes to developers or companies, tech executives think the 30 percent commission is still a significant take by Apple.
Spotify has continued to defy Apple and its App Store policies, initially asking users to pay via other channels and not via the App Store to avoid the higher rates. Despite legacy subscribers paying more to Spotify Premium, they are no longer accepted in the present, with users needing to re-subscribe manually instead of having their accounts refreshed every cycle, as Spotify moves away from the App Store rates.
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