Spotify Q3: "Accelerated Execution" grows subs, users, revenue, and margin

"Subscribers: This key user metrics rose 12% from last year's Q3, reaching 281 million. Those are the paying customers who get an ad-free experience. Total users is a different measure... MAUs: that's Monthly Average Users, a tabulation which includes subscribers plus non-subs, reached up to 73 million. "The business is healthy. We're shipping faster than ever. And we have the tools we need - pricing, product innovation, operational leverage, and eventually the ads turnaround." - Daniel Ek, CEO, Spotify"

"As a dual business - subscription and advertising - Spotify emphasizes improvements to the free (ad-supported) service. The Q3 release mentions enhancements including "making it easier to listen, connect, and share music for free." That's a bit vague, but this is more specific: "Users now have more control to search and play any track, or o jump right into a song a friend shared." Guess how many Spotify playlists users have created. Go ahead; guess. It's nine billion."

"Today it is a thriving category. In the Q3 earnings report we read, "In just two years, Spotify has introduced millions of new listeners to audiobooks." That's a little confusing, but Ek is referring to the addition of free audiobook listening in the Premium level. That initiative now covers 14 global markets with a collection of 500,000 English language markets. The earnings report claims 36% year-over-year rise in audiobook listening."

Q3 results show subscribers rose 12% year-over-year to 281 million paying customers while Monthly Active Users reached 73 million. CEO Daniel Ek noted a dip in advertising but expressed confidence in recovery, citing faster shipping, pricing, product innovation, operational leverage, and an eventual ads turnaround. Spotify is improving the free ad-supported tier, adding controls to search and play tracks and jump into shared songs. Users have created nine billion playlists. Audiobooks expanded into 14 global markets with a 500,000 English-language collection and reported 36% year-over-year listening growth. Taylor Swift generated several historic firsts in the report.

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