Spotify has announced it has hit a new landmark of 110 million paying subscribers.
The figure is up 31% year-on-year, as more consumers switch to its premium service to avoid adverts, which are played between every couple of songs on the free tier of Spotify.
The 110 million figure compares to 60 million paying Apple Music subscribers worldwide.
“We finished Q2 with 108 million Premium Subscribers globally, up 31% Y/Y but below the midpoint of our guidance range of 107-110 million,” Spotify said in a statement.
“Intake from our biannual campaign was in line with our expectations, monthly churn declined both sequentially and Y/Y to a record low 4.6%, and our win back percentage on gross ads reaccelerated Q/Q.
“However, intake into our Student product was below plan. As we have discussed previously, our goal is to perform at roughly the 70th percentile of our guidance range and we missed on subs. That’s on us. The good news is that the shortfall was execution related, rather than softness in the business, and we expect to make up the lost ground before year-end.”
It’s important to note that Spotify’s figures also include customers on promotional deals.
The company regularly offers a $0.99/month for three months deal for new customers.
That means the company’s Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) is just €4.86 ($5.42).
“Tens of millions of users are now streaming podcast content on a monthly basis, and more are discovering new forms of audio content each day,” Spotify added as it looked to reassure investors that it was working on new ways to keep its app monetized and bring in revenue.
“Our podcast audience grew more than 50% Q/Q and has nearly doubled since the start of the year. Our Content team continues to find and support engaging material across a wide range of genres and geographies. Q2 saw the launch of a number of original and/or exclusive titles like Jemele Hill Is Unbothered and Riggle’s Picks in the US, The Dark Side of… and The Two Princes from the recently acquired Parcast and Gimlet studios, respectively, Adam och Kompani in Sweden, and 3 Shots of Tequila in the UK.”
“In addition to these titles, more than 30,000 new podcasts were delivered through our Spotify for Podcasters platform. We also launched a new product feature called Your Daily Drive to better serve the in-car listening experience that intertwines up-to-the-minute news from partners including NPR, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Times with music specific to your listening history.”
“Additionally, we announced a multi-year partnership with President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s production company, Higher Ground, to produce exclusive content for the Spotify platform. The Obamas formed Higher Ground to produce powerful stories to entertain, inform, and inspire, and to lift up new, diverse voices in the entertainment industry.
“Under the Higher Ground partnership, President and Mrs. Obama will develop, produce, and lend their voices to select podcasts, connecting them to listeners around the world on wide-ranging topics.”
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