After launching a free mobile service last month, Spotify has taken another step towards freedom by removing restrictions on its web player, letting users listen to the entire Spotify catalog for free, without limits.
The impending arrival of Beats Music in just a few short days has led the Swedish company to take some drastic measures. Previously, people using the free version of Spotify were limited to a certain number of hours of listening. Starting today, Spotify has completely removed these limits.
While this bold move may hurt revenue, it could also help increase Spotify’s market share in the online music streaming sector and prevent users from switching to other free services. The biggest risk is upsetting premium users, who pay a monthly fee for unlimited streaming via the desktop client. It could lead users to unsubscribe from the paid version in favor of free streaming for the web player.