A streaming music app co-owned by Sony Music and Universal Music is adding a free tier. The labels operate NOW That’s What I Call Music! brand, which includes the NOW Music app for both iOS and Android mobile devices in the UK. The app now offers a free, ad-supported counterpart to its usual mid-tier subscription of £4.99 per month.
Listeners on the free tier have unlimited shuffle play access to the NOW catalog, as well as weekly charts.
“We’re a nation of music lovers and during COVID-19 music is more important than ever before,” NOW Music Senior Digital Director Alex McCloy said. “We have seen a huge uptake in app downloads and streams pushing the app to the No.1 position over the Easter bank holiday, and we hope our Free tier will give people more choice to access the music they love.”