Spotify Has Twice as Many Paid Subscribers as Apple Music

[MH01]

How many people should be paying for Apple Music?

Someone posted a link earlier that said only 68 million people on Earth are paying for any streaming music.

That sounds awfully low given that there are billions of people who listen to music and who have a device or multiple devices that can stream music.

This isn't necessarily an Apple problem... it's a paid-streaming-music problem. Maybe it's just not a product/service that everybody needs. Did you ever think about that?

You can keep railing on Apple for only having 15 million paid Apple Music customers... but I don't think paid streaming music is as big an industry as you think it is.

That said... Apple with 15 million out of 68 million is pretty damn good. That's 22% in less than a year.

This is what I love , when Apple leads and creates a new category that sees growth skyrocket, people quote the growth.

When Apple enters a category, say Apple Watch or Apple Music, people gloat about how Apple took a major share of the established user group.

At no point do some users question of Apple Music might actually be crap....and THAT is the reason it's not doing so well.

I'm not stating my thoughts on streaming . I'm just putting in place users that are quoting/gloating how well Apple has done so well in such a short time, with some numbers that put it into perspective.

I was really excited about Apple Music! Beats 1 and poor UI killed it for me.

 

[TallManNY]

Let's not forget that the ad-supported users are not getting the same service, especially on mobile devices (where they can only play in shuffle mode and have limited skips).
By the same logic you could claim that radio stations are "giving away the milk for free".
[doublepost=1466460944][/doublepost]Given that subscriptions are currently their only revenue source that is growing, I really doubt they will.

Not the same service, but they are still getting a great service as evidenced by 70 million supposed users. And yes radio stations give away a very limited selection of music for free, but they seem to have more ads, cheaper broadcast costs and they at least turn a profit (though I understand it gets harder every year to do so, mainly due to companies like Spotify).

 

[Michael Scrip]

I'm not stating my thoughts on streaming. I'm just putting in place users that are quoting/gloating how well Apple has done so well in such a short time, with some numbers that put it into perspective.

Maybe you should put some thought into streaming as a whole.

Your "numbers in perspective" are actually pretty good!

15 million paid subscribers of a highly optional service... how is that bad?

Is it because they aren't as high as Spotify's paid subscriber numbers at this same moment?

But then you want to disregard the fact that Apple Music has only been around for less than a year... while at the same time you keep mentioning "a billion devices"

You're all over the map.

Maybe look at the big picture before you "put people in their place"

I also provided numbers... 15 million out of 68 million. That should add some perspective to Apple Music.

 

[corky5678]

Spotify doesn't work with Siri. Not good.

 

[ktecac]

Spotify doesn't work with Siri. Not good.

I think it will be able to now in iOS 10. Siri is now open to developers and as far as I understand Spotify should be able to take advantage of that. If that is the case that's a huge step. (I may not be understanding this right but at WWDC it showed how Siri could now interact with WhatsApp and Uber etc for 3rd Party app specific functions).

 

[OneMike]

Overall I think Spotify is a better service than Apple Music. Until Apple Music doesn't require iTunes or an iPhone, I can't see myself using it again.

 

[domino67]

Not bad for a service that has only been around a year. Spotify has been out what... 5 years now or more?

And Beats Music has been around for 4 years....Also how many iOS devices have it preinstalled?

Spotify started from scratch where Apple Music had a large head start and built in user base.
[doublepost=1466465502][/doublepost]

I think they need to decouple the player from the operating system.... why do I need to wait for iOS 10 for an upgrade on the service?

That's iOS for you.

 

[nStyle]

Competition is definitely a good thing...but I can't see that Spotify will remain on top within 2 years.

 

[69Mustang]

It's growing... until the labels take out their music from there...

Why would the labels take their music from Spotify? Most of the services are paying around 70% so it's not like the labels are getting a better deal from Apple, Google, or Spotify.

That's no how it works.

How is this not how it works? What's more accurate? Quoting %-ages that that don't reflect the actual number of subscribers that signed up or looking at the hard numbers 8.5 million new subscribers vs 10 million new subscribers over the same time period. I'm pretty sure both companies are looking at "How many actual paying customers did we get?"

15 million = all captive iOS users???

I agree this isn't totally accurate. But spitballin', you could safely put AM iOS users at very high 90's percentage wise. I'm just guessing but subs from Win and Android users is probably negligible.

Don't think so, if AM keeps getting better and better, while Spotify keeps being the same, and musicians attacking it.

Why would you think Apple would try to make their product better while Spotify stands pat? I don't get the logic. Quietly as it's kept, musicians have a problem with streaming revenue period, not just Spotify. Again, all the services are basically paying the same rate as far as I can find.

If you have 1 consumer and now you have 2 costumers, yes, it's a 100% growth rate. What's the problem?

The problem is using growth percentages as a measuring stick when the actual number of new customers shows a much more accurate picture of membership. To make an assumption based on the growth rates staying the same is unrealistic at best.

I have no dog in this fight. I don't use either service. I use the service that gives my family the best bang for the buck, All Access. I'm just commenting because of intellectual curiosity.

 

[jonnyb098]

I think they need to decouple the player from the operating system.... why do I need to wait for iOS 10 for an upgrade on the service? Also, the service needs to become more social..... I love that my friends on Spotify can send me playlists and I can see what they're listening to (i find a lot of good music this way).

Apple Music can't even match the current feature set in Spotify.... when in reality they really need to exceed and enhance the Spotify player.

I can also share playlists using Apple Music......you know there's a share icon right?

 

[citysnaps]

No

Maybe it's because Spotify is twice as good!?

No... It's about AM being around for just a year, and only running on iOS devices and Macs.

Spotify has been around for many years and runs on (essentially) all smartphones and computers.

Huge difference...

 

[Michael Goff]

I think it will be able to now in iOS 10. Siri is now open to developers and as far as I understand Spotify should be able to take advantage of that. If that is the case that's a huge step. (I may not be understanding this right but at WWDC it showed how Siri could now interact with WhatsApp and Uber etc for 3rd Party app specific functions).

Nope, music is not a category that works with SiriKit.

 

[chukronos]

I went back to spotify after trying AM. I wonder how long spotify can be around if they keep operating at those large losses.

 

[jicon]

Overall I think Spotify is a better service than Apple Music. Until Apple Music doesn't require iTunes or an iPhone, I can't see myself using it again.

Well... it now doesn't require an iPhone/iPad/iPod. Apple Music was released for Android back in November.

I prefer Spotify.

 

[Fuchal]

If Spotify let me upload my own music to the cloud and share it on all my devices, I'd give it a second thought.

Both Spotify and Apple Music have giant gaps in their library. But only Apple Music lets me mend it with my personal library.

 

[Michael Scrip]

No... It's about AM being around for just a year, and only running on iOS devices and Macs.

Spotify has been around for many years and runs on (essentially) all smartphones and computers.

Huge difference...

Apple Music for Android... and iTunes for Windows... would like to have a word with you

 

[littyboy]

1. Doesn't let you upload your music from the desktop app
2. Doesn't have beats 1 radio
3. Doesn't have the high-profile exclusives that Apple has
4. Spotify Radios throw a lot of crap at you

Both Apps are good as it gets, specially the iOS 10 version. It's more a question of content.

1. I thought you could?
2. Terrible reason
3. Not sure about this, besides Taylor Swift.
4. Another terrible reason.

 

[sudo1996]

So screw the regular user by providing a paid-only service, right?

I am a fan that Spotify is providing a free tier. It has worked out well for them, clearly.

Sorry, stuff isn't free. Spotify only exists because investors think it'll become profitable some day.

I don't think it's worked out well for them. After all those years of taking losses to aggressively capture market share, they only have twice as many paid subscribers as Apple Music, which is younger. Personally, I wouldn't bet my money on them succeeding. If they were public, I'd actually short sell.

 

[LordBeelzebub]

Ahhh!! Spotify first started in 2008 and Apple Music has been out only one year. Yes, fair comparison.

 

[PizzaBoxStyle]

As Apple moves its iTunes purchasers to a streaming model, they'll catch up and leave 3rd parties like Spotify well behind. AppleMusic simply has advantages as a native app that make it very hard for 3rd parties like Spotify to compete. The same reason that browsers like Firefox, Chrome and Opera can't compete with Safari on iOS.

Yikes! Apple sure did compel this iTunes purchaser to the streaming model. I tried out Google Play Music and so far it's everything I ever wanted iTunes / iTunes Match to turn into. It just works. It's in my browser. It's on my phone. The only thing I can gripe about is that the audio quality isn't as good as my ALAC rips. This is coming from someone who typically avoids Google's services outside of web search.

Also, Firefox, Chrome and Opera can't compete on iOS because they are not allowed to.

 

[Command]

Just throwing my 2c in here - although I have no doubt it's been said.
1. Spotify is 10 years old. Founded in 06, launched in 08. So... realistically, it's at least 8.
2. In my 10-12 month stint with Spotify (perhaps this has changed) I could generally only find covers or 'tribute' songs to many of which I looked for. That, more than anything, irritated me.
That said.... use what you want. Neither service will notice.

 

[c.d.embrey]

There's and old saying: "Don't put all your eggs in one basket."

If I were in the market for streaming music, and I'm not, I would go with Spotify instead of Apple Music. This is also the reason I don't use iCloud.

 

[PizzaBoxStyle]

They both pay too little for streaming compared to broadcasters it's basically daylight robbery. The revolution that was the internet is now just companies sucking money out of the creative industries. We seem to value truly talented individuals as disposable. Look at how poorly 3D artists in the movie industry are treated and paid, the vast sums of money are no longer trickling down as it used to. The rich are getting richer and the middle class is being pushed into poverty. Both these services are part of the problem.

To be fair, hasn't this always been a problem in the music industry, even before the internet? Couldn't you go back to the 1950's and 1960's and say the same thing? In the 1990's, how much did Whitney Houston or Celine Dion or Britney Spears make from album sales on CD? (I don't know, genuinely curious, but I suspect that a lot of the profits went to the record labels.)

I don't disagree that the internet has been devaluing creative work - it has. But the music industry, from the stuff I've read about in biographies, is pretty dirty with or without the internet. Artists/acts usually loose. And I've also seen rumblings about how abusive things have gotten for 3D artists... sounds completely miserable!

You might like these links:

• http://www.quirksmode.org/blog/archives/2016/03/the_webs_origin.html
  
• http://www.quirksmode.org/blog/archives/2016/03/does_free_make.html

 

[c.d.embrey]

Not the same service, but they are still getting a great service as evidenced by 70 million supposed users. And yes radio stations give away a very limited selection of music for free, but they seem to have more ads, cheaper broadcast costs and they at least turn a profit (though I understand it gets harder every year to do so, mainly due to companies like Spotify).

Sooner, rather than later, radio will go away. Killed by satellite and internet radio. For me, listener supported Radio Paradise https://www.radioparadise.com/rp_2.php?# is a good fit.

 

[hemanwomanhater]

Did you ignore the part of the article where Spotify said they are growing faster now thanks to Apple Music. So, not really any revenue loss to speak of yet.

Did you ignore the part where the article stated Spotify is still operating at a loss?