W/C - 17th October: Weekly Article (11)

Spotify UK revenues surge to almost £190m as mobile subscriptions take off

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/oct/14/spotify-uk-revenues-surge-to-almost-190m-as-mobile-subscriptions-take-off

Summary

Spotify is the world's biggest music streaming service it gives customers access to more than 30m songs from artists ranging from Ellie Goulding to Taylor Swift and even American based artists. The article focuses on how their revenues have grown enormously in the last year. Chief Executives say that the rise in revenues is thanks to the drastic technological changes that are working there way through society. We are increasing listening to music and doing a multitude of other tasks on the go rather than on a desktop which is why subscriptions to mobile apps/sites are on the rise. 

Key Statistics

• Revenues at Spotify's UK business rose to almost £190m last year 
• Subscription income soared to over 40% with the increased use of the mobile site
• Spotify carries a $8.5bn (£6.9bn) valuation 
• Total UK revenues rose by 18% from £159m to £187.2m last year, fueled by a 44% surge in subscription revenues from £119m to £171m.
• However, last year ad revenue fell slightly from £11m to £10.8m 
• Offers access to over 30m songs
• Spotify charges a fee of £9.99 a month for subscriptions 
• The UK company (Spotify) made a small pre tax profit of £2m, up marginally from £1.67m in 2014
• Ed Sheeran most streamed artist in the UK last year

My Opinion

As we all are very well aware NDM is quickly developing with us converting from desktop technologies to portable technologies such as tablets and mobile phones. Using portable technologies I think is half the reason why subscription rates are on the rise as we are increasingly wanting services that are easy to access and can be used on the go.However, the rise is subscription rates to mobile sites is also down to the developing market of mobile internet which is only growing I mean we are so far at 4G internet!!!!. Due to the convenience of mobile sites we are not that bothered about paying a small fee in most cases for the content that we need and want. I personally am subscribed to Soundcloud and Spotify and as I am within a generation of digital natives who live out of mobile phones I think that the success of mobile sites is only going to continue. However, saying this YouTube is still a heavily used site and caters for those who are less accustom to mobile sites.