As we know, the popularity of streaming keeps growing. Why? According to Jeffrey L. Wilson for PC Magazine: “With the rise of streaming music, people are listening to their favorite songs and compositions in their homes, offices, or any other location where their devices can connect to the Internet. Streaming music services are so vital to the industry that the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) now factors music streaming into its Gold and Platinum album certifications.” Today, we look at leading streaming services. Especially, Spotify gaining on Pandora.
First, consider these two posts: Music Is Scoring Big on Social Media. And Music Streaming Payment Rates Differ by Platform.
The Battle for Music Streaming Supremacy: Spotify Gaining on Pandora
Streaming Music
According to Felix Richter, reporting for Statista:
“In Nielsen’s 2018 Year-End Music Report, it found that Americans streamed a record of more than 900 billion songs At 611 billion, on-demand audio streams grew by 49 percent in 2018. Because subscription services such as Spotify and Apple Music grew increasingly popular among Americans.”
“As the Statista chart illustrates, the songs streamed over the Internet increased more than eight-fold between 2013 and 2018. Streaming, both ad-supported and subscription-based, now accounts for 65 percent of U.S. music revenues. Further, it has long replaced CDs and downloads as the number one way of music consumption.”
Spotify Overtaking Pandora
In the battle for music streaming supremacy, Pandora has been ahead of Spotify. For example, in 2015, Pandora had 77.5 million listeners. At that time, Spotify had 24.1 million listeners. But since then, things have really changed.
“This year, Pandora will have 72.2 million US listeners, down 0.5% over 2018. Pandora has been the dominant music streaming platform in the U.S. since its 2000 launch. Until recently, competitors were nowhere near it. Back in 2012, Pandora had 67.0 million users, compared with Spotify’s 5.0 million. But Pandora has been losing users. In fact, by 2023, it will have lost more than 9% of its users since its peak in 2014.”
“In 2019, Spotify will have 65.3 million users, up nearly 14% year over year. By 2021, it will have 73.7 million, surpassing Pandora’s 72.2 million. Smart speakers and mobile devices have been big growth drivers for Spotify.”