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Streaming music service Spotify is growing in the UK and soon may overtake iTunes as Europe's biggest digital music service, reports Music Week, which spoke to Spotify's European head of media relations Kevin Brown [Via The Guardian].
Spotify's growth in the UK is quickly accelerating with the service adding more than 1 million active users in the past four months, claims Brown. Many of these new customers are lucrative subscribers who are paying for the premium service instead of listening to the ad-supported, free version. Brown attributes this growth to Spotify's partnerships with Vodafone and the Sunday Times.
"Some of our partners are saying Spotify is now generating more revenue each month across Continental Europe than iTunes," Spotify's head of label relations in Europe, Kevin Brown, told industry site Music Week.
"Given that download sales are declining and Spotify is growing rapidly, particularly in the UK, it is only a matter of time before Spotify is bigger than iTunes across Europe as a whole."
Spotify last year had 24 million active users and 6 million paying users worldwide, but the company has not updated those figures to reflect this recent increase. Brown believes the company is close to surpassing 10 million paying users, and many believe the company is waiting for this milestone to announce updated membership numbers.
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In the U.S., iTunes is the market leader for digital music downloads and iTunes Radio is number three for streaming music. In the streaming market, iTunes Radio holds an 8 percent market share, with Spotify holding 6 percent. The pair trail iHeartRadio (9 percent) and market leader Pandora, which dominates with 31 percent market share.
In an effort to standardize the experience across platforms, Spotify recently updated its iOS app with a darker theme as well as new fonts and icons that match the web and desktop versions. All platforms also received a new personalized Your Music section and an updated Browse feature.
Top Rated Comments
(View all)It will be dead (rejected by the App Store) before the tech industry even finished reporting this story.
No way they will allow this. Apple wants a music monopoly.
Vaporware still at this point! Come back when it is either rejected or is put on the App Store.
Never in a millions years will Apple allow this into the App Store. In fact, it will be approved the same day a Netflix movie viewer is approved.
This is exactly what Apple won't do. I would be seriously surprised if Apple allow this app, if they do though, there is no way it would ever be allowed to run as a background process...
Can't blame Apple for rejecting this.....Why should they allow their competition to exploit there infrastructure?
Spotify: What a Horrible name for a business or service. I have no idea what it means in Swedish, and could care less. Why rent music??
Apple will send it tumbling in flames....:(:(:(
Because "normal" radio sucks 99.9% of the time
1. It's free.
2. It uses less battery.(On your phone)
3. There are plenty of good stations, that is, where I am.
4. Is greener, no server farm involved.
5. You'll never know what they play next.(Which is a good thing to me)
a.s.o.
Spotify has totally changed the way I listen to music. Let's hope they can continue the great work!
Totally agreed. A Spotify subscription was the best music purchase I ever made.
Best music app out there, hands down.