Spotify Plans to Expand Market in 80 More Countries & Launch HiFi Subscription

Sieeka Khan, Tech Times 23 February 2021, 09:02 am

Spotify, a popular audio streaming service, is planning to expand its market and broaden its geographic footprint as it announced it will be launched to more than 80 countries and will add 36 languages to its streaming platform.

Spotify's tough competition

The Swedish streaming company announced its plan to expand internationally on Feb. 23 at a livestreaming event that featured pop singer Justin Bieber and former Duke and Duchess of Sussex Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

Spotify stated that the expansion allows billion people to use the audio streaming service. It will be expanded into what are seen as developing countries in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and the Pacific.

In the next few weeks, Spotify will be accessible in Tanzania, Ghana, Nigeria, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Jamaica, Samoa, Belize, and Bahamas.

Also Read: Spotify to Create Playlist Based on User's Emotion with New Voice Technology

According to Variety, Spotify stated that these moves represent the company's broadest market expansion so far, and its main goal is to be available in 170 countries.

Introduced in 2008, just a year after the first iPhone was launched, Spotify has garnered 345 million monthly active users in 95 countries. Out of the 345 million users, 155 million of them are premium subscribers that are paying the monthly or yearly fee.

Spotify started as a music streaming platform, but eventually, it evolved to catering audiobooks, podcasts, and even meditations.

The company, which is based in Stockholm, has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to make sure that they gained rights to exclusive podcast series including a new show from former U.S President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama. The podcast will feature singer Bruce Springsteen.

Spotify has stiff competition as over the years, other tech companies such as Amazon, Google, and Apple came up with their own music streaming services.

The company's biggest competitor so far is Apple Music, and Spotify even got entangled in an antitrust dispute with Apple, according to The Verge.

Spotify noted that it is not fair that the company has to pay Apple a commission, or "tax", when users subscribe and pay for their service through the Apple's App Store.

Spotify also filed a complaint to the European Commission in March 2019, and until now, a probe is still ongoing. The share price of Spotify decreased 4% to $350 on Feb. 22, and it decreased another 0.5% to $348 in after-hours trading.

Spotify Clips

Expanding to other countries is not the only recent move that Spotify has made to get to more users. A Snapchat-like feature called Spotify Clips will show stories from famous artists just like a feature on Instagram Stories, Facebook MyDay, and Twitter Fleet.

However, this feature will still undergo a testing stage and will only be available to selected artists in the meantime. The feature will give fans a chance to see what their favorite artists have been up to while enjoying their music on the platform.

Aside from Spotify Clips, the company is also set to introduce Spotify HiFi that promotes content in HD with CD-like quality audio. The Spotify HiFi is said to be added to the premium subscription of the platform.