A study by retail music provider Startle has revealed the UK public pays the most for individual subscriptions to the top three platforms, including Spotify, globally.
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While folks across the pond in the US are charged the most, according to the new research.
Spotify hiked its UK-based Premium, Duo and Family package costs by £1/ $1 in late July, much to its users’ dismay.
Since then, the search phrase ‘Spotify Premium VPN’ has raked in over 336million views on TikTok.
But following the trend could turn out to be an even more costly mistake than simply coughing up the extra cash.
A VPN, or virtual private network, essentially disguises your IP address.
They can be used to get a cheaper subscription price by masking as an IP address from another country where prices are less expensive.
Subscription costs are typically based on the population of a country and the per capita income – which means costs can vary significantly.
However, not only can VPNs be used as malware trojans, but they go against Spotify’s guidelines.
Spotify bans the act of “circumventing any technology used by Spotify, its licencors, or any third party, including any territorial or other content access restrictions applied by Spotify or its licencors.”
And breaking Spotify’s T&Cs can see your account restricted or worse, banned.
That means a lifetimes worth of tunes, playlists and a well oiled recommendations systems go up in smoke.
Instead of a VPN, it’s wise to reconsider the plan you’re on if you’re worried about the cost.
If you and your friends are all paying for solo packages, maybe opt for the family subscription you can all pay into.
Look into student and family discounts, too.
Or ultimately, learn to live with the ads on the free Spotify edition.
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