What you need to know
- Counterpoint has released new research into music streaming.
- Figures suggest Apple took 25% of Global Music Streaming Revenue in Q1 of 2020.
- COVID-19 has reportedly accelerated growth.
New Counterpoint Research figures suggest that Apple Music captured 25% of streaming revenue in Q1 of 2020, as COVID-19 accelerated growth.
Global online music streaming subscriptions spiked 35% YoY in Q1 2020 to reach 394 million subscriptions, according to the latest findings from Counterpoint Research. This was driven by increased usage of the OTT platforms as people stayed at home amid the COVID-19 outbreak. Promotional offers like free trials and subscription price cuts in emerging markets added to the growth. Increase in podcast genres on the music streaming platforms was another big factor for people to tune in.
According to Counterpoint's figures, Spotify continues to lead the global streaming market, capturing 30% of streaming revenue, and 33% of subscriptions. Apple Music secured 25% of streaming revenue, but only 21% of subscriptions in Q1 of 2020. Amazon Music also enjoyed a surge of growth, 104% year-on-year. Tencent Music remains the global king of monthly active users, with 657 million MAUs in China.
Counterpoint's Abhilash Kumar said:
"The growth in paid subscriptions (35% YoY) was once again more than the 20% YoY growth in monthly active users (MAUs). This indicates that people from the free MAU universe are upgrading to become premium subscribers for an improved experience. This also indicates that it is relatively difficult to bring users into the system, but once they come in, it is relatively easy to make them upgrade."
Kumar noted Apple Music's expansion to 52 new countries, and its continued offering of 6-month free subscriptions, new iOS features like sharing Apple Music on Facebook and Instagram has also increased social media engagement.
Kumar notes that, much like Q4 2019 figures, COVID-19 has driven growth in the OTT market, as more people stay home, noting that it "improved the overall scenario for the music streaming segment."
