Spotify subscription boom following free access limits

Freemium model in doubt though

19 August 2011 16:08 GMT / By Paul Lamkin

Spotify has shed 1.6 million users in just three months, according to figures that Music Alley has got its hands on.

But the good news for the streaming service is that it has added over 500,000 premium subscribers to its books in the same period.

Both the rise and fall can be attributed to the fact that in May, Spotify added restrictions to its freemium model - with a limit of 10 hours ad-supported play and a maximum play of five times per track.

The rise in premium subscribers, up around 50 per cent to 1.54 million, will no doubt be seen by the Spotify bods as a successful result to the restrictions, by its advertisers will surely be concerned that the amount of free users heading away - down over a million from 4.73 million to 3.13 million (with the 500,000 or so choosing to switch to premium).

Out of the 1.54 million Spotifyers coughing up each month, 80 per cent are paying the full premium price as well.

A recent Pockt-lint poll found that 46 per cent of our readers were Spotify premium users.

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Via: musically.com

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