Rumor has it that Apple is planning another tease, a major upgrade to Apple Music, to coincide with the AirPods 3.

According to Hits Daily Double, Apple Music will add a new high-fidelity, lossless audio streaming tier that will offer streams beyond the current 256 kbps AAC format. This means that those using high-end speakers and headphones will certainly hear the difference once it is introduced.

Exact sound quality is not specified in the report, but the move should bring Apple Music closer to the next HiFi tier of Deezer, Tidal, Amazon Music Unlimited, and Spotify.

Apple may have an ace up its sleeve. While all of its rivals charge (or are expected to charge) more for improved audio, Apple Music appears to be offering a free upgrade to its $9.99/month subscribers.

This may reflect Apple's unwillingness to achieve the studio quality offered by Tidal and Amazon, but it still seems too good to be true. However, this is the information that Hits Daily Double obtained from "label sources."

Offering high-fidelity lossless audio is typically a paid extra for audiophiles, costing $5 (Amazon Music Unlimited) to $10 (Tidal) per month Spotify HiFi does not yet have a monthly fee. The company is raising its fees this week, presumably in preparation for the arrival of a new tier.

So, in such a market, can Apple really decide to offer a lossless streaming upgrade without charging more? Clearly, Apple has the resources to do so.

Nevertheless, despite its growth, Apple Music is behind Spotify in terms of subscribers. If offering upgrades that others charge for is the way to close that gap, it certainly makes sense for Apple to invest some of its abundant resources in making that happen.

It is also worth noting that this move is not unprecedented for the company. Apple famously offered HD movie buyers a free upgrade to the 4K HDR version, but without any obligation to do so.

According to Hits Daily Double, the new price point will be announced at the same time as the AirPods 3, which should be available in early 2021. It will be interesting to see how rivals react if the company keeps subscription prices the same and improves quality.