Spotify and Warner Music Group have entered into a new multi-year agreement covering recorded music and publishing that will see the companies “work together to shape the future of audio-visual streaming and enhance the value of music.” The news followed Spotify’s Q4 earnings report that included the company’s first annual profit, with net income of $1.18 billion. Paid subscriptions were up 11 percent for the quarter, closing the year with 263 million premium users and record engagement growth overall, with 35 million new monthly active users for the quarter. Moving forward, the company is looking to new subscription tiers and content bundles.

In an earnings interview with Reuters, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said the company plans to attract subscribers with more personalized offerings, including a new premium tier targeting “superfans of music” that will offer premium features.

“For the next step in the music industry’s growth, we’re going to have not just one product for all people, but actually different types of products, different types of affinities, and one of those products is superfans of music,” Ek told Reuters.

“The comments come as Spotify has been teasing a hi-fi tier for years,” TechCrunch observes, noting that deals like the one with WMG and one announced two weeks ago with Universal Music Group provide the music streamer with “the opportunity to launch new offerings to attract more subscribers and boost revenue.”

“For Spotify, 2025 is a year of accelerated execution, and our partners at Warner Music Group share our commitment to rapid innovation and sustained investment in our leading music offerings,” Ek said in an announcement touting the deal. “Together, we’re pushing the boundaries of what’s possible for audiences worldwide — making paid music subscriptions more appealing while supporting artists and songwriters alike.”

“The agreement focuses on advancing audio-visual streaming, expanding music and video catalogs, and, notably, introducing new paid subscription tiers with exclusive content bundles,” Billboard writes.

Terms and financial details for WMG deal were not disclosed, nor did Ek go into specifics about the new paid offerings planned beyond a general mention of “differentiated content bundles” and his comments to Reuters, though Spotify did mention the agreement “introduces a direct licensing model with Warner Chappell Music in several additional countries including the U.S., reinforcing songwriters’ benefit in this evolving landscape.”

That could in part address a problem The Verge points out: that Spotify “reportedly has lower per-stream artist payout rates than rival services like Apple Music, YouTube Music, and Amazon Music and has been widely criticized by artists who claim Spotify’s payouts are too small.”

In its earnings report, Spotify said it “paid out a record $10 billion in royalties to the music industry in 2024.”