Amazon tipped to launch free, ad-supported music streaming tier

Amazon is preparing to introduce a free, ad-supported music streaming service tier, according to an exclusive report by Billboard.

'Sources familiar with the plan' reportedly told the publication that the free service would offer users a limited catalogue of songs (like Amazon Prime Music, then?), and could be available as early as next week.

Amazon currently has two paid-for music streaming offerings: Prime Music – which offers a few million songs and comes bundled with Prime Video, Prime Reading and free next-day delivery for £7.99/$12.99 per month – and Music Unlimited, which is a standalone, more traditional Spotify-rivalling music service offering over 40 million songs for £9.99/$9.99 per month (or only £3.99/$3.99 per month on a single Echo device).

While such a move would certainly indicate the company's competitive capacity to further challenge Spotify's subscriber numbers, it could also emerge as a double victory for Amazon in encouraging more people to purchase its Echo hardware.

Becky is a hi-fi, AV and technology journalist, formerly the Managing Editor at What Hi-Fi? and Editor of Australian Hi-Fi and Audio Esoterica magazines. With over twelve years of journalism experience in the hi-fi industry, she has reviewed all manner of audio gear, from budget amplifiers to high-end speakers, and particularly specialises in headphones and head-fi devices.

In her spare time, Becky can often be found running, watching Liverpool FC and horror movies, and hunting for gluten-free cake.