Spotify adds I million new users in India in one week after its delayed launch on 27th February 2019 according to a company spokesperson. However, the company declined to say how may of these new listeners were paying subscribers or were using the ad-supported Spotify Free service. Spotify is up against strong competition in India with players like JioSaavn, Amazon Music, Xiaomi-backed Hungama and Gaana. Gaana, backed by Chinese tech giant Tencent has over 80 million users in India, while JioSaavn has access to more than 250 million users of the Jio mobile network. Many of Spotify’s global competitors, including the music streaming services Apple Music, Google Play and Amazon Music Unlimited also have an established presence in India.
Amarjit Batra, Managing Director, Spotify India commented that “We’re able to give users a distinct music experience, right from day one, that builds on the demand for genres of music across moods and moments. They can tap into over three billion playlists, and even have ones created specifically for India with the most popular local languages. Spotify will also enable them to discover new and local artists as they continue to break into the music scene.”
The potential for Spotify in India which has a population of over 1.2 billion provides enormous opportunities for the streamer. “With a market of our size, it’s not surprising that India leads when it comes to the weekly average in music streaming: according to the Indian Music Industry (IMI), Indian internet consumers are spending almost 21.5 hours every week listening (compared to the global average of 17.8 hours weekly)”, he continued.
“We see a huge potential in the market with music fans who have yet to migrate onto a preferred streaming platform. Spotify can offer a seamless personalized streaming experience whenever and wherever they want, and with a platform that’s customised just for the Indian market.”
Spotify aim to foster Indian music both locally and worldwide with a plethora of playlists, 40+ million songs, and millions of creators on their platform. The streamer takes ‘the sounds of Bollywood, Kollywood, Tollywood, and independent artists not just to Indian fans, but also to the diaspora and the global audience.’
