Spotify enters India, opens up advertising on day one

Sensing the increasing potential of the music streaming market, Swedish firm Spotify has entered India with more than 40 million songs from various genres of Indian and international music.

Spotify’s launch will pose a strong competition to existing online music streaming players such as Gaana, JioSaavn, Apple Music and Amazon Music. As the music streaming market is heating up, the music library and songs offered by these platforms will play major role in attracting listeners.

The music streaming app has opened up for advertising for brands on day one with OnePlus, Brand USA, and Anheuser-Busch InBev as launch partners. Upon launch, these brands will have exclusive rights to launch their advertising campaigns on Spotify India. Through Spotify, these brands will be able to reach out to highly engaged, passionate and socially active users.

In a press statement, Spotify said, “When music fans stream in these moments, they reveal who they really are, the moment they are in, and even their moods; this first-party data and insights comprises Spotify’s Streaming Intelligence. For brands and marketers, this presents an unparalleled opportunity to serve the right message, to the right person, in the right context.”

Globally, Spotify free users spend an average of 2.5 hours each day listening to music on the platform through multiple devices.

Brands will benefit from:

1. Premium content environment: Spotify prides itself on being a premium environment that celebrates culture and creativity by bringing artists, fans, and brands together. The content on the Spotify service is licensed from its partners or created by our in-house team.

2. Multimedia ad experiences: Compelling audio, video, and display ad formats available that help brands tell their story to the right audience in the right context. Just as music is social, so is Spotify. Music fans can create and discover playlists, and share instantly with friends on Spotify, Facebook, Twitter, Line, WhatsApp, text and email.

This is especially significant for advertisers, who are constantly seeking insights for what is popular and share-worthy by their core target audience.

Sunita Kaur, Vice President of Advertising Sales at Spotify, APAC, said, “The Indian advertising industry is thriving as brands target active internet users. We are thrilled to launch in India with three incredible, diverse brands and we are exploring more opportunities to bring other advertisers on board in this market, creating a new playground for them to reach audiences through the power of audio and our streaming intelligence.”

Spotify has launched with a music library of three billion playlists and has redesigned the music experience for India with a fresh set of exclusive features. Keeping in mind the diverse languages spoken in India, the app offers multi-language music recommendations. Indian users can select their preferred languages to receive tailored daily mix, home, radio, search results and recommendations.

For the first time, the Swedish firm is offering its online music streaming for free to its users. But if a consumer wants to upgrade to Spotify Premium, then they will have to pay a small amount of Rs 119 per month. The consumers can pay for monthly or yearly subscriptions through Paytm, credit and debit cards. The company also has other payment options for users who choose to pay through e-wallets and other cards.

The premium upgrade offers ad-free on-demand music on computer, phone and tablet. Users can access music offline and can enjoy high-quality streaming (320kbps). The service provides a month’s free trial for first-time users.

Daniel Ek, founder and CEO, Spotify, said, “As Spotify grows, our goal is to bring millions of artists and billions of fans together from every country and background. India has an incredibly rich music culture and to best serve this market, we’re launching a custom-built experience. Not only will Spotify bring Indian artists to the world, we’ll also bring the world’s music to fans across India. Spotify’s music family just got a whole lot bigger.”

The app also features a playlist of popular songs from Bollywood, Tollywood, Kollywood and Punjabi movies and actors. It also has a city playlist that features algorithmic playlists tracking what’s trending in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Chennai. The music can be played in the background and users can also share their music with friends through social media apps.

The Spotify app is now available on mobile, desktop and tablet and can be played on a wide range of speaker and home devices. Consumers can access the app in car, on televisions, voice and wi-fi speakers. The users can explore integrations with Google Maps, Tinder and Instagram, among others. Spotify is available on over 500 products across 200 hardware brands globally.

Amarjit Singh Batra, Managing Director, Spotify India, said, “Indians love music. It’s an inherent part of our lifestyle and culture, whether we pray, work or relax. The mobile internet revolution has led to a rapid rise in the number of connected Indians, making music streaming the preferred way to enjoy music here. Spotify pioneered music streaming a decade ago, and has constantly reinvented itself to bring the best music experience to the world, and now to India. Through our unmatched personalised experience, we want users to find the best music from India and the world, and empower Indian artists to find new audiences in India and worldwide.”

Globally, Spotify has 207 million active users of which 96 million are paid users. The app adds around 30,000 new tracks and has paid €10 billion to rights holders since its launch in October 2008. The app is available across 79 markets.

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