Author: Manish Singh / Source: VentureBeat
A year after Spotify publicly expressed its intention to launch in India, the Swedish music streaming giant has finally delivered. This is a notable milestone for a company that went public last year and has been aggressively searching for new users in global markets as competition from Apple intensifies.
Spotify sees a big opportunity in India, one of the fastest-growing music markets, and is pulling out the stops to court Indian users. The company said that for the first time Spotify Free — its free tier — will enable users to listen to any song on demand, as opposed to the limited set of playlists included in other markets. Spotify Free is available on mobile, tablet, and web.
Additionally, its monthly premium tier starts at Rs 119 ($1.67) in India, compared to $9.99 in the U.S., €9,99 ($11.30) in France, and £9.99 ($13.25) in the U.K. The company is also offering a pay-as-you-go option, allowing users to access Spotify Premium for Rs 13 (18 cents) per day and Rs 39 (55 cents) per week.
These prices — the cheapest rate Spotify offers in any market — and an open free tier underscore the unique challenge India presents to global companies. Very few people in the nation are willing — or can afford — to pay for premium services.
For Spotify, the move was a strategic strike against rivals such as Apple and Google and the more than a dozen local services waging a price war in the market. Apple Music has made concessions to the Indian market by charging just $1.69 per month, but it doesn’t have a free tier. Spotify is offering a 30-day free trial in India, and its free tier could confer a sizeable advantage.
“As Spotify grows, our goal is to bring millions of artists and billions of fans together from every country and background,” said Spotify founder and CEO Daniel Ek in a statement. “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.”
Spotify’s India launch, which was rumored to be in the works as far back as 2016, is nothing short of a Bollywood film script. In the past year, the company has…
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