Spotify’s Cadillac App Requires Active Data Subscription: Owner Tip

Last week, Spotify announced a new app for Cadillac vehicles that runs natively on the new third generation of the Cadillac User Experience infotainment system. Though the availability of the Cadillac Spotify app is quite exciting and unique, it does require two paid subscriptions:

1. A Spotify premium plan, which is priced at $9.99 per month, and
2. An active 4G LTE data plan, offered in one of the following plans:
   • $20 a month for the unlimited plan
   • $10 for 1GB
   • $10 a month as a device for AT&T customers

So, besides the obvious price of a Cadillac equipped with CUE 3.0, it would cost one a minimum of $19.99 per month to use the native Spotify app in their Caddy.

The Cadillac Society Take

Purchasing a data plan or adding their Cadillac to an existing AT&T account as a device, as well as paying for the premium version of Spotify, should not be a big expense for most Cadillac owners, but the subscription stipulations might serve as a deterrent for some.

Even so, it’s vital to note that there are several secondary benefits to subscribing to both Spotify Premium and the Cadillac data plan:

• Subscribing to the premium version of Spotify delivers an ad-free listening experience and removes the limitations of the free version (whenever the Spotify is used and on any device), and
• Getting a data plan also gives one the ability to use the Wi-Fi functionality as well as the other connected services that are part of the CUE infotainment system, like traffic and weather.
  • Those with a brand new Cadillac who are on the trial period can use the Spotify app for free during the time period and data limitations of the trial.
  • Using the Spotify app and the in-vehicle Wi-Fi counts towards the plan’s data limit (in the case of the per-gigabyte plans) as well as towards the data speed cap (in the case of unlimited plans)

Despite the ancillary benefits, we imagine that the subscription stipulations and resulting cost will push most customers to continue using the Spotify app on their smartphone and outputting the sound to their vehicle, either though Bluetooth or a physical (cable) connection.