Universal, Warner to Remaster 'Thousands' of Songs for Hi-Res in Amazon Partnership

Amazon raised the bar for music streaming Friday, announcing a partnership with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group to remaster “thousands” of songs and albums in 24-bit with sampling rates from 44.1kHz to 192kHz, what Amazon calls Ultra HD. Amazon cited songs from artists including the Eagles, Marvin Gaye, Lady Gaga, The Notorious B.I.G., Ariana Grande and Selena Gomez as among those that have been remastered “to the highest quality streaming audio.” They are available exclusively on Amazon Music HD, Amazon said, and all titles resulting from the partnership will be delivered in 24-bit and 96 kHz or 192 kHz. Amazon Music HD subscriptions are $12.99 monthly for Prime members, $14.99 non-Prime. David Solomon, chief high-res music evangelist at streaming service Qobuz, messaged us that he was told by Warner Music that none of the material being remastered in 24-bit is exclusive to Amazon. Qobuz doesn’t support Dolby Atmos Music or Sony’s 360 Reality Audio, “so that wouldn’t have any bearing on what we’re doing now,” Solomon said. He called the Amazon news “a bit misleading at best.” Warner and Universal couldn’t be reached for comment. Amazon didn't respond. The partnership builds on a promise to deliver the best possible recordings available for streaming "by upgrading existing recordings to make the listening experience even better, and preserving artistic legacy for future generations,” said Amazon Music Vice President Steve Boom in a statement. The partnership delivers “key recordings” from Universal and Warner catalogs, “exclusively for Amazon Music customers.” Amazon plans to work with other labels to upgrade the digital quality of more audio recordings and “provide customers with all of the emotion, power, clarity, and nuance of original recordings across all genres,” said Boom.