Spotify has recently made changes to its mobile interface. This has led to a rise in the subscriber count and streaming revenue. If you want to learn more, check out this article.

Apple Music

The two main competitors in the music streaming space are Spotify and Apple Music. They’re both very popular. Despite being well-established, Spotify has been able to hold its own against the competition. In fact, its subscriber count and revenue are arguably higher than that of Apple.

However, in recent years, Apple has managed to make a strong impression. Unlike Spotify, it offers more features and a wider variety of genres. This gives it a distinct advantage, and the service is known for its high-profile exclusives.

Apple also provides users with access to a vast library of songs and albums. Aside from its own catalogue, the company also allows subscribers to enjoy live radio and audiobooks. Plus, it supports the Amazon Echo ecosystem.

The company is renowned for its curated playlists and radio. It has a database of 80 million tracks and 4 million podcast titles. Interestingly, it also has a free tier. That’s a big deal. If you don’t like the advertising that comes with the premium package, you can opt for the free tier.

Another unique feature of Apple Music is its Replay function. This resurfaces the most-played tracks throughout the year. You can listen to them for as long as you like.

While Apple Music is still far behind Spotify in the global rankings, the company is gaining ground in a number of territories. Moreover, its subscriber count is growing at a fast pace.

Spotify’s business model

Streaming service Spotify has a business model that integrates the traditional business model of a subscription service with a freemium model. This model means that Spotify has a variety of different subscription plans for its users. It also offers a free ad-supported service, which serves as an acquisition channel for Spotify.

As part of the freemium business model, the company is required to pay royalties to the IP owners of the streamed tracks. Spotify pays an average of about 70% of the monthly revenue to the owners of the IP.

The company has a premium subscription plan, which allows Premium Subscribers to have unlimited online and offline access to the catalog. Moreover, they can create shuffled playlists based on their favorite artists.

Currently, the service has more than 100 million users worldwide. They have a diverse clientele. Depending on the location, there are various subscription plans that cater to a range of lifestyles and demographics.

Spotify is currently targeting people aged 18 to 34. Earlier, they targeted people between 25 and 54. However, as the company has expanded into other markets, the company has diversified its target audience.

In addition to streaming music, Spotify also offers various other services. These include ad-supported audio streams and other paid services. Some of the other services that the company offers are Spotify Singles, a popular show that features 30 new songs every Monday, and Spotify Discover Weekly, which features 30 new songs every Friday.

Social media integration

Whether you’re a brand or a music lover, Spotify is a great way to connect with your audience. Featuring a vast library of songs, podcasts, and radio, it’s an easy way to get to know the latest releases. Moreover, Spotify has built-in social features that allow you to interact with your followers, see what your friends are listening to, and even share your own playlists.

Spotify isn’t the only music streaming service out there. However, its ubiquity makes it the first choice for most users. In fact, as of April 2019, Spotify had more than 188 million subscribers. This number increases as the app adds more and more music every day. It also boasts an impressive number of features, including a web player and iPhone app.

As for the features that make it the best overall music streaming service, it’s hard to say. Unlike rivals like Pandora, Spotify doesn’t feature native workout functions. Plus, the app isn’t quite as easy to use as its desktop counterpart.

Having said that, it’s worth mentioning that Spotify has made a major investment in podcasts. The service has a few million weekly downloads, and the company also has a podcast network of its own. And, like iTunes, Spotify allows you to subscribe to your favorite artists. You can listen to their new and old releases.

The company also launched a series of wacky campaigns. One of them was a social media campaign that was surprisingly effective.

Changes to the mobile interface

As part of its efforts to improve recommendations, Spotify is updating its mobile interface. This redesign will make it easier to find and listen to content you’ve recently added to your playlist. It also introduces new features.

The new interface includes a redesigned home page. In its place is a new Featured Collections section. These will feature time-sensitive content, such as podcasts.

Spotify has also introduced a new Grid View. While the old version is still visible, it’s now easy to navigate through the content you’ve saved. You can even drag and drop songs into your playlists.

Another update is the new shuffle play button. This will replace the combined button, which was inconsistent across different platforms.

Finally, the Spotify Music feed provides suggestions for new songs and podcasts. For Premium users, they can also download music.

The updated UI also includes a new heart icon next to the track name. In addition, you can now write descriptions for tracks. Lastly, the search bar has moved from the bottom of the screen to the top middle.

The new redesign will also make it easier to discover new content. The redesign is the first step in the company’s quest to enhance engagement with its users. By doing so, it hopes to become a group lead in the streaming industry.

Lastly, there are new filters and a better sorting system. Previously, it was difficult to determine the order of your favorite tracks.

Podcast listening hit a high in the second quarter of this year

Podcast listening has reached a record high in the second quarter of the year. That’s according to Edison Research. Their survey included 2500 Hispanic/Latino adults aged 18 and older.

There are a number of reasons for podcast listening. Some listeners tune in to get information or entertainment, but a large portion of people listen regularly for personal or professional development.

According to eMarketer, podcast listenership is expected to grow by 7% in one year. They also predict that podcast revenue will hit $1 billion by 2021.

The most popular devices to use are smartphones, computers, and smart speakers. Older people also tend to use computers for email and checking in with their grandchildren. However, these users don’t stay online as long as younger people.

While most of us don’t like to be inundated with advertisements, more than half of podcast listeners say they’ve purchased something after hearing about it in a podcast. In addition, 64% of podcast listeners have visited an organization’s website after listening to a podcast.

These listeners are smart, technologically-savvy, and have a higher income than the general population. But there’s still a gender gap in their podcast listening habits. Only about a third of women listened to podcasts in the last month, while nearly half of men did.

Several major media players have invested in attracting podcast audiences. This includes iHeartRadio, Apple, Google, and Amazon Music.

In fact, Spotify grew its revenue by 23% in the second quarter of the year. During the quarter, it generated 2.86 billion euros.

Streaming revenue followed a similar trend with Apple and Spotify

When Apple released its own music streaming service, it came as a surprise to many. But the company had dominated the industry before. The service had more than 50 million subscribers before it was launched.

Now, Apple has outpaced rivals such as Jay-Z’s Tidal and Spotify in the subscriber count. And it has taken steps to secure more exclusives. Its catalog has increased to 90 million songs.

The music industry has been pushing for higher payouts. However, Spotify’s royalty structure isn’t ideal for artists. Streaming services like the ones from Apple and Spotify pay out two-thirds of their revenue to rights holders, rather than paying their artists directly. This creates a large incentive for the record labels to keep a high percentage of their money.

Artists also argue that the per-stream payment rate is a better measure of how much they earn. In most cases, the Spotify payout is less than a penny. That makes it tough for non-star artists.

Despite the growing competition, Spotify is still the world’s biggest music-streaming service. It had 37 million subscribers in Q2 2016, and 83.2 million by the end of the year.

According to MIDiA, a trade group that gathers information from a range of services, the market is growing. It added 109.5 million new subscribers in Q2 2020, a growth rate that is faster than the prior year.

But if Spotify raises its prices, it could lose subscribers to its competitors, Apple and Amazon.