Spotify and Tesla team up to give Model X and Model S owners a FREE Premium account

Curtis Moldrich Read more December 22, 2015

Things just got even better for Tesla owners. Yesterday, Tesla Motors and Spotify announced that owners of the Model S and Model X electric cars will receive a free Spotify Premium account. The result? Tesla owners will be able to listen to ad-free music, download tracks locally and control Spotify’s Premium service with their voice – or directly from their car’s 17in touchscreen.

Spotify and Tesla team up to give Model X and Model S owners a FREE Premium account

But it gets better: Tesla says it’ll also pick up the bill for any mobile data owners use, so the service is 100% free – if you’ve already paid £50,000-odd for a Tesla of course. Tesla says the update is coming to owners in Europe, Australia and Hong Kong via an over-the-air update on Monday, but it won’t be available in the US just yet.

A new type of car radio

“Car radios have changed very little since the first FM radio was fitted over 60 years ago. Until now,” said Jonathan Tarlton, Spotify’s senior manager for business development. “This best-in-class, seamless integration represents the future of all music and content consumption in the car, with the best part being that tens of thousands of Tesla customers around the world can already experience that future today.”

Tesla’s move to Spotify comes after the collapse of Rdio, the car company’s previous streaming partner – but it does come with a range of interesting catches. For one, the free account can only be used inside the car. That means Tesla owners without an existing Spotify account will need to start a new one to listen on other devices such as their smartphone or tablet. Conversely, those who already have Spotify Premium will be able to link their playlists and share their library with the new Tesla account.

Cars and the internet of things

Tesla’s move to bring Spotify to its cars is a perfect example of the way cars are becoming an extension of the Internet of Things. Now featuring their own native apps, and the ability to connect directly to the internet, manufacturers such as Tesla are making the car another mobile device – as well as a mode of transport.

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