I truly hope that’s not the case - I do hope the labels offer reasonably similar terms to all providers, though you’d imagine the Spotify/Apple/Amazon setups might get cheaper pricing due to actual customer numbers compared to smaller outfits. It would be anti-competitive to say the least to charge a smaller service more for the same service, but probably happens and why we need to support the more bespoke outfits if they are to survive.
It was quite refreshing that Qobuz cut the cost for existing subscribers, too often cutting pice is only for those signing up. I had this argument with Sky in recent years, eventually they reduced my subscription after doing the cancellation ritual.
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That’s good news as I signed up to Qobuz about a month ago for £25 per month so hopefully drop to £15 next payment
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The only reason now for anyone with a second generation Naim streamer not to switch to Qobuz from Tidal is the slightly better catalogue for some genres with Tidal…or am I missing something?
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No Nigel, that sums it up, I have run both in tandem for over six months, not much missing from Qobuz library for my taste in music.
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I’m no real fan of Sky and got rid of it over a decade ago - too expensive but primarily because virtually all content was poor quality SD and when I was more into home cinema back then I just wanted to spend money on better quality movies on DVD and later BluRay/4k UHD.
When my father died in late 2019 I was dreading, based on my own experience trying to leave all those years ago, having to deal with Sky who provided his broadband/phone as well as a basic Sky package.
I really felt they would be awkward especially having searched online and seen threads on fora where people had had difficulty finding a relevant number.
Eventually I tried one of their numbers and the lady I spoke to could not have been more courteous, professional and understanding.
I called them as soon as the direct debit would have failed due to his accounts being frozen. I was told they would waive any unpaid charges after his death, and that I had the option of cancelling or taking over the account on a short/longer term basis - it was made clear that cheaper options might be available for longer term commitment which made sense.
I knew I did not want the Sky Package but was unsure whether or not to keep the landline/ADSL service. I vacillated for many weeks, and have still not called them back.
The other day two letters arrived at his house - the first seemed automated saying as the direct debit had failed they would terminate the service within so many days and if he was happy with that to do nothing, or otherwise call to recommence a subscription. The other letter from their customer services to me noted a recent bereavement and was incredibly polite just asking me to contact them when I knew what I wanted to do.
Contrast that with TV Licensing sending an accusatory letter advising the ‘case’ would be passed to the local ‘enforcement team’ as ‘something has changed at the property’. Happy to pay my licence or subscription just get rid of the TV Licensing Authority!!!
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Yes got the price reduction email today… happy days… My Studio Pemier 14.99 now… quite a reduction.
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I wonder if they are just simplifying their subscriptin tiers.
They used to have a CD quality classical only plan which I think was ditched, though was cheap.
I could never see any sense in their MP3 quality subscription if their raison d’être was better quality streaming audio.
They got rid of my standard Sublime subscription a few years ago though I remain on it.
From what I see, have they simplified it to hi-res monthly/annual vs Annual Sublime+?
Sorry for the long screengrabs but for the UK:
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Was it £24.99 before or £19.99?
While I appreciate many simply stream, the Sublime discounts on hi-res purchases are very significant if you regularly buy music from them.
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It was called Qobuz Studio previously and was 24.99 a month, the premium for upto 192/24 streamed media.
Nice to see not everything in Hi-Fi has regular price rises…
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This may all just be a preemptive stike against Amazon HD. 
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They’re never going to usurp Amazon’s position, but I’m always amazed that people are happy to spend thousands on boxes for playback, but are unhappy paying a bit more every month for a better quality streaming service. There are just too many compromises with Amazon 's offering currently.
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I would happily pay more for Qobuz, et al. if I knew the extra was going to the artists.
Perhaps, but the artists need to be proactive too.
It would be nice to see industry wide transparency and a little generosity from the big stars, such that payments were perhaps skewed in favour of those with much lower sales - this would support up and coming acts and probably not cost that much if sales were low - yes we could argue that the larger numbers of less popular artists might take a significant chunk overall, but a bit like footballers many big stars seem to get unfair financial breaks. That said, is it not true these days that ‘merchandise’ and concerts are the major sources of income for artists?
Yes, it’s not available in may country’s that Tidal is 
Is it? What’s your source for this? Does that include jazz and classical musicians too. I would like to know the source and understand how that’s supposed to make streaming fair. The way I see it, if I play something by artists on Qobuz, they should get paid for entertaining me. To assume they’ll make it up on a concert tour or with merchandise seems kinda disingenuous to me. I would happily pay – say $50/month, the price of a couple records – if the extra $35 went to the artists.
Still too much for me to switch entirely. I managed two weeks without Tidal the one week there was too.many missing and still they are not available. It does depend on your music tastes. I find Tidal is better for smaller indie releases, but Qobuz also covers quite a lot Tidal misses. It’s an odd mix but now Qobuz is cheaper not so hard on the wallet as it was.
True it’s pigs ear of a service. It offers the best coverage and the the most albums but it does not embrace the simplest things like bit perfect playback.
He’s right most artists these days make more from touring and merchandising on these tours than any sales or streaming. It’s the opposite of what it once was. Ticket prices are extortionate these days especially for the larger acts. Do you think the Stones would still be touring if this wasn’t the case. They need to maintain the extravagant life they are now accustomed to. Most bands there days don’t stop touritn. Look at Ed Sheeran he toured for God knows how long, for the love of it? Doubt it.
I think I’ve had to use Tidal a couple of times in the last 4/5 months to fill the gaps, I could easily buy the albums that aren’t available and still be in profit, need to cancel Tidal.