Pandora Planning 'Day Pass' For Its Ad-Free Music Streaming Service
Pandora remains one of the most popular Internet radio stations out there and it's about to do something that could attract even more music listeners. During Pandora's investor day last Thursday, company executives said Pandora is likely to add a paid day pass to its service that would allow listeners to rock out with their cocktails out to ad-free music this summer.
The thought process is that someone hosting a summer barbeque or pool party may want Pandora to DJ the event, but rather than pay $4.99 for a month-long Pandora One subscription, they'd be able to snag a 24-hour day pass for $0.99. That price isn't set in stone, though, and neither is the length of the pass -- Pandora is currently testing whether it should be for one or three days, the latter of which would cover an entire weekend.
"Pandora is committed to delivering an effortless, personalized experience and we recognize some consumers may want an ad-free experience but don’t necessarily want to commit to a subscription. This offering will allow consumers to choose and explore what is right for them or suits a particular event or experience," Pandora told Gigaom via email. "Pricing and exact timing are yet to be determined but we expect it to be available later this year."
A day or weekend pass would also present Pandora an opportunity to be less reliant on advertisers. As it stands, the bulk of Pandora's revenue comes from ads -- $220 million in the fourth quarter, compared to $47.9 million from subscriptions.
The thought process is that someone hosting a summer barbeque or pool party may want Pandora to DJ the event, but rather than pay $4.99 for a month-long Pandora One subscription, they'd be able to snag a 24-hour day pass for $0.99. That price isn't set in stone, though, and neither is the length of the pass -- Pandora is currently testing whether it should be for one or three days, the latter of which would cover an entire weekend.
"Pandora is committed to delivering an effortless, personalized experience and we recognize some consumers may want an ad-free experience but don’t necessarily want to commit to a subscription. This offering will allow consumers to choose and explore what is right for them or suits a particular event or experience," Pandora told Gigaom via email. "Pricing and exact timing are yet to be determined but we expect it to be available later this year."
A day or weekend pass would also present Pandora an opportunity to be less reliant on advertisers. As it stands, the bulk of Pandora's revenue comes from ads -- $220 million in the fourth quarter, compared to $47.9 million from subscriptions.
