Spotify is coming to PlayStation soon, as Sony pulls the plug on its own music-streaming service

Paul Sawers
Updated
Spotify
Spotify

Spotify is adding game consoles to its list of supported platforms, with the news that it’s launching on PlayStation “soon.”

While the music-streaming company hasn’t provided many details itself, Sony has revealed what it calls a new “music destination” called PlayStation Music, which Spotify powers. It lands on the PlayStation Network (PSN) in 41 countries, and this means Sony’s own Music Unlimited music-streaming service is closing on March 29.

PlayStation Music is for PS4 and PS3 as well as Xperia smartphones and tablets.

Last year, Microsoft ditched its free ad-supported Xbox Music streaming service, focusing instead on the Premium $10/month incarnation. There’s no indication yet that Microsoft is ready to throw the towel in on its own music-subscription offering, but it may make sense for it to consider partnerships such as this, too.

Crucially, this is more than a simple app for playing music in the background while you entertain buddies — you can also use Spotify to soundtrack your gameplay. While you could technically do so with Music Unlimited, the experience left a lot to be desired, with many games blocking music playback.

Additionally, Sony says it has some “great features” in store that are exclusive to Spotify on PlayStation Music.

Closure

From Feb. 28, existing Music Unlimited subscribers will receive free access to Music Unlimited for the month leading up to when its closure. After this, presumably, PlayStation Music will launch — however, Sony has yet to confirm an exact date.

It’s not entirely surprising to see Music Unlimited make way for a dedicated music-streaming platform. Indeed, handing the music-streaming baton to Spotify enables Sony to focus on its core strengths in the gaming realm, while Spotify can focus on building a native app that works flawlessly, including during game-play.

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