Spotify Adds QR Checks for Some Family Plan Members

Spotify is asking some Premium Family members to verify that they live with the plan manager by scanning an in-person QR code, with a missed or incomplete check potentially barring them from another Family or Duo plan for 12 months. Spotify’s support instructions give members seven days after receiving a verification notification to scan a code displayed on the plan manager’s phone. The code refreshes every few seconds, and the instructions say both people must be together for the scan. The company says it may request checks from some members; the reported information does not establish how widely they are being applied. Spotify co-CEO Alex Norström described the verification effort during the company’s third-quarter earnings call as a routine, ongoing improvement to existing methods, rather than a time-limited crackdown. He said the Family plan represents a significant portion of Spotify’s subscriber base and that verification methods would continue to be improved as ways around them emerge. Spotify’s subscription terms require Family and Duo members to live at the same address. The consequences depend on the check involved. Under the QR process, members who miss or cannot...