In two fell swoops, premium audio services like Tidal and Deezer are likely being forced to re-evaluate their pricing structure, and the folks at Spotify are likely rethinking the price of their upcoming HiFi tier. Apple announced it was bringing lossless to Apple Music in June, starting at CD Quality (16-bit/44.1kHz) and going all the way up to 24 bit at 192 kHz. That’s about as good as it gets, and it costs the same $9.99 as it ever did. Apple also announced support for Dolby Atmos and Spatial Audio, leading to far more immersive experiences than the usual stereo. It’s wonderful news for audiophiles looking to save a few bucks. Lossless won’t offer an audible benefit for most listeners — read this and see if you can tell the difference — but I can certainly appreciate getting more quality for the dollar. But offering lossless at a lower price isn’t all sunshine and rainbows — at least not necessarily for the artists behind the music. Despite my skepticism over the audible benefits of lossless audio, there’s an argument to be made that it still deserves that premium for being quantitatively closer to the original music — for the peace of mind that no information is being lost, and that you’re getting the best sound quality possible. Existing audiophile-oriented streaming services will either have to bring their prices down, or offer some very compelling features to justify costing 50-100% more. But they can’t really compete on the quality front anymore. It simply doesn’t get better than lossless. While consumers will benefit from the move to make lossless a ‘free’ upgrade, it’s worth remembering that someone’s going to have to pay the price. If you want to support the artists you care about, it’s still worth actually buying an album from time to time, whether as a digital download or a good ol’ record.
