The number of Spotify users has exceeded 500 million – Kommersant

The Swedish company Spotify AB, which owns the audio streaming service of the same name, reportedthat in the first quarter the number of its users grew by 22% compared to the same period last year and reached 515 million. In the fourth quarter of last year, the number of monthly active users of Spotify was 489 million. The company also managed to increase the number of paid subscribers – up to 210 million, which is 15% more than a year earlier.

The total revenue of the service for the quarter amounted to €3 billion, which is 14% more than a year earlier. Spotify said revenue growth was driven largely by revenue from paying subscribers. However, the company’s bottom line is suffering from declining ad revenue, with a loss of €225 million in the first quarter, compared to a profit of €131 million a year earlier.

Analysts notethat, in addition to declining advertising revenue, the company’s spending on expanding the podcast segment also affected profits. As a result, Spotify, although it surpassed analysts’ forecasts for user growth (515 million actual and 502 million according to forecasts) and almost met revenue forecasts (actual € 3.04 billion, € 3.09 billion forecast), but did not meet forecasts significantly on earnings (€1.16 per share actual, €0.85 per share at loss forecast). Despite this, after the publication of the quarterly report, Spotify AB quotes in New York trading rose by 6%.

Evgeniy Khvostik