Newbie with offline listening queries

[cdaw49]

I'm planning to get Spotify Premium but have a few questions I've not been able to get answers to.

(1) If I'm running Spotify on a Samsung S5 Mini and a Windows 10 Tablet do I need to download music on each to listen offline?

(2) Can I move the downloaded music to a different storage location such as an external HDD? I plan to change from an Acer laptop to a Win10 tablet and also plan to factory reset my phone and reload it. If I have offline files can I save them so I can put them back later?

(3) Are the offline music files accessible and in a format I can play on a different program or MP3 player? I'd like to add some to a USB pen in the car which saves me connecting my phone and draining the battery. I understand copyright laws but once I have paid for the music I should be able to have multiple copies of it for my personal use.

Thanks

[Daniel · Accepted solution]

Here you go:

1. Yes, each device has to have the tracks downloaded on the actual device you intend to listen on.

2. On your phone you have the option to store a cache on whichever storage location you prefer. You can do the same on a PC with the Spotify app in the Advanced settings screen of the Spotify desktop application.

3. Offline files are only accessible using the Spotify application. The key point to note here is that when you subscribe to Spotify Premium you are not paying to own a track (like iTunes, HMV etc) so that you can do what you like with it. You are in fact paying for the rights to be able to stream tracks... a bit like a semi-rental. Think of it like a music version of Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video etc