Reports: Spotify filings

Spotify Q4 2020 earnings
ARPU pays the price for growth

Mark Mulligan

February 2021

Subscriptions

Streaming

Streaming Music

In 2020 Spotify accelerated the growth of its total user base, with emerging markets playing a key role. However, revenue increases became decoupled from user growth across all categories, resulting in ARPU deflation. Companies and brands mentioned in...

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Spotify Q3 2020 Earnings
The Shift to Free

Mark Mulligan

November 2020

Subscriptions

Streaming

Streaming Music

With three quarters of 2020 gone, Spotify has prospered during the most challenging of times, with consistent growth across most metrics. Q3 2020 saw a slight deviation from the script though, with ad-supported in the driving seat, especially in emerging markets.

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Spotify Q2 2020 Earnings
In the Shadow of COVID

Mark Mulligan

August 2020

Subscriptions

Streaming

Streaming Music

Spotify’s share price grew strongly in June 2020, with the markets responding positively to its podcast investments. However, while that increase was sustained throughout July, by mid-August the share price was heading back down to late-June levels.

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Spotify Q4 2019 Earnings
Great Year for Premium, Less So for Ad Supported

Mark Mulligan

February 2020

Subscriptions

Streaming

Streaming Music

2019 was another strong year for Spotify’s premium business, in which it saw off growing competition to retain its leading global market share. But it was also another year in which Spotify’s ad-supported business did not grow fast enough. Companies...

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Spotify Earnings Q3 2019
Up on Most Counts

Mark Mulligan

November 2019

Subscriptions

Streaming

Streaming Music

Q3 2019 was a quarter of mixed fortunes for Spotify, with its subscriber base showing good, consistent growth, podcasts making a solid early showing, emerging markets demonstrating promise but ad revenue falling short. Companies and brands mentioned in...

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Spotify Q2 2019 Earnings
Mature Markets Still the Engine Room of Growth

Mark Mulligan

August 2019

Subscriptions

Streaming

Streaming Music

Q2 2019 was another solid quarter for Spotify, adding the same number of subscribers it typically does in promotional quarters. Core metrics such as churn and average revenue per user (ARPU) all moved in the right direction, but Spotify remains out of contract with two major label partners and needs emerging markets’ subscriber growth to start pi...

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Spotify Q1 2019 Earnings

Mark Mulligan

May 2019

Subscriptions

Streaming

Streaming Music

Q1 2019 was a quarter of milestones for Spotify, hitting 100 million subscribers, launching in India and becoming a podcast company. However, it was also a quarter in which a number of metrics started to soften. With the exception of ad revenue, none of these subtle shifts are enough on their own to provoke any serious concern.

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Spotify Q4 2018 Earnings
Strong Subscriber Growth With a Hint of Profitability but Long-Term ARPU Deflation

Mark Mulligan

February 2019

Subscriptions

Streaming

Streaming Music

Spotify finished 2018 strongly, over performing in both subscriber and ad-supported MAU additions. This was accompanied by Spotify’s first ever profitable quarter and two major podcast acquisitions early in 2019, hinting at a positive year ahead. However, at the same time, premium ARPU continues a long-term decline.

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Spotify Q3 2018 Earnings
Metrics on Track But Investors Not Convinced

Mark Mulligan

November 2018

Subscriptions

Streaming

Streaming Music

Spotify’s Q3 2018 earnings once again showed continued solid progress across most of its performance metrics, with strong progress in many areas. However, weakening investor confidence across US tech stocks as a whole, coupled perhaps unrealistic investor expectations saw Spotify’s share price fall again.

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Spotify Q2 2018 Earnings
More Needed from Emerging Markets and Ad Supported

Mark Mulligan

July 2018

Subscriptions

Streaming

Streaming Music

Spotify’s Q2 2018 earnings show continued solid progress across most of its performance metrics. However, investor scrutiny is intensifying, especially with the growing subscriber arms race in the US becoming — albeit incorrectly — perceived as a litmus test for global success.

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Spotify Q1 2018 Earnings
Steady Course But Is It Enough?

Mark Mulligan

May 2018

Subscriptions

Streaming

Streaming Music

On the 2 May 2018 Spotify released its first quarterly earnings. The results fundamentally represent a continuation of the figures presented in Spotify’s F1 filing and show strong results across most performance metrics. Nonetheless, investors were not satisfied (apparently spooked by growing losses), resulting in a dip in Spotify’s stock price.

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