Spotify launched in South Korea in February 2023, but without an ad-supported plan.
Now, three and a half years later, the streaming company says its “free” option is now available on the market.
Spotify said the launch of its ad-supported tier in South Korea, the world’s seventh-largest recorded music market (IFPI), marks a major milestone for the platform.
According to Spotify, the launch of its free tier “opens up an exciting new way for advertisers and brands in South Korea to reach a predominantly young, highly engaged audience.”
Spotify’s global ad revenue is €456 million ($490.97) Q2 2024, 12% annual increase At constant exchange rates, all regions posted double-digit annual growth rates.
Globally, Spotify had 393 million ad-supported monthly active users in the second quarter (the three months to the end of June), an increase of 5 million from the previous quarter (the first quarter).
The potential market in South Korea is very important. According to Datareportal, there are 50.3 million The number of Internet users in South Korea at the beginning of 2024, when the market’s Internet penetration rate was 97.2%.
Spotify’s number of global paid users increased to 246 million in the second quarter, an increase from the same period last year 7 mega of net subscribers 239 mega Report on last season (Q1 2024).
Commenting on today’s (October 10) launch, Gautam Talwar, general manager of Spotify Asia Pacific, said the company’s free tier in South Korea “means huge potential for new audiences, discoverability and ultimately more revenue for artists” .
In addition to bringing potentially huge ad revenue gains to streaming services in the market, Spotify may also hope to convert some of its free user base into paid subscribers in South Korea in the future.
In today’s announcement, Spotify noted that “Globally, most subscribers start their Spotify journey with a free account,” but “free users can choose to upgrade to a premium experience for on-demand, ad-free access. Music Listening”.
Spotify offers three paid plans in South Korea: Individual, Duo and Basic, priced at 10,900, 16,350 and 7,900 won respectively (see below).
Spotify said artists from across all genres in South Korea now receive an average of more than 5.8 billion plays per month, an increase of more than 70% since the platform launched in the country three years ago.
SPOT ranks markets such as the United States, Indonesia, Philippines, Japan, Mexico, Brazil, Thailand, India, South Korea and Taiwan as the top streaming markets for Korean artist music.
“The launch of Spotify Free in South Korea is an exciting time, not just for consumers, but for artists and the industry as a whole.”
Gautam Talwar, Spotify
“The launch of Spotify Free in South Korea is an exciting time, not just for consumers, but for artists and the industry as a whole,” said Gautam Talwar, general manager of Spotify Asia Pacific.
“We are opening the door to every listener in Korea to start discovering and connecting to millions of songs and podcasts through our technology and services, which means huge potential for new audiences and discoverability, and ultimately for artists. Come to more income.
Talwar added: “We launched Spotify in South Korea in 2021, and since then we have been working hard to connect more Korean artists with listeners both locally and around the world.
“We are committed to growing and expanding the reach of our artists globally, and the free products we bring to the market will add more Korean listeners to the mix.”global music business
