The music industry is owned by streaming, and since the format has shown to be both the industry’s present and future savior, many of its rivals are concentrating on gaining as many users as they can. While profitability is hard to come by, these companies have been able to amass a larger listener base than any of the other options available. The more paying customers (or at least the more people willing to listen to advertising), the better.
Peer-to-peer file sharing is where the concept of music streaming first emerged. Though they were taken down for unauthorized use of copyright material after only a few years, Napster, Limewire, and BitTorrent were at the vanguard of revolutionizing the way consumers thought about music and helped to shift the industry towards new kinds of accessibility.
List Of Top 10 Most Music Streaming Platforms In The World
1. YouTube – 1.5 Billion
In terms of music streaming, YouTube is by far the most widely used platform worldwide. According to the Google-owned corporation, the website is being used by over 1.5 billion people each month, with a significant number of users selecting at least one musical option. Although it is technically true that YouTube is a video hosting platform rather than a streaming music service, the website has grown to be a major force in music and the go-to online destination for millions, if not billions, of people to access their favorite songs. Moreover, streams of official clips do contribute to official chart numbers, so it is definitely worthy of inclusion here. Only 1.5 million individuals have been persuaded to become paying subscribers to YouTube Red, which offers free streaming of music and video, and public figures are still unavailable on the YouTube Music app.
2. NetEase – 400 Million
NetEase Music is still worthy of inclusion on our list even though it hasn’t made it to America. According to a corporate statement from late 2017, the Chinese streaming and download platform has over 400 million users and is growing at an astonishing rate. It will shortly surpass half a billion customers as the second streaming service.
3. SoundCloud – 175 Million
Though it always seems to be on the verge of serious disaster, the streaming behemoth with its headquarters in Berlin is in some respects superior to other options in the expanding market. SoundCloud has millions more listeners than the next music-only service with at least 175 million registered users. Very few of the 175 million users have enrolled in SoundCloud Go, the company’s premium streaming service.
4. Spotify – 170 Million
When it finally gained traction years ago, Spotify—possibly the most well-known participant in the streaming game—changed the music business, and it hasn’t stopped since. In actuality, the company’s user base is growing at an increasing rate. Although people at the top of the firm would like more, the corporation claims that it currently has 170 million users, half of whom pay for premium membership. This is a big success already.
5. iHeartRadio – 100 Million
Not only is radio giant iHeartRadio a force on the conventional dial, but many people who adore their local DJs now find it to be their go-to streaming destination. Millions of people use the entertainment giant’s streaming app and website each month, and although it won’t reveal the precise number of active users on a monthly basis, the corporation did acknowledge last year that it had crossed the 100 million registration mark. It’s unclear how many of those are regular listeners, but 100 million sign-ups is still a huge number.
6. Pandora – 74 Million
Though it was among the first companies to become well-known for streaming music, Pandora’s user base has been declining recently, and it’s not clear if this trend will continue. The American company claimed to have slightly about 74 million members worldwide by the end of 2017. That amount is only roughly half of what Spotify has amassed, but it’s significant given that Pandora presently only runs in a few countries due to legal and regulatory constraints. That amount would probably be much, much more if it was actually universal.
7. Apple Music – 50 Million
Since its inception, Apple’s streaming service has created quite a stir in the market. Although its user base hasn’t yet reached the heights of some of its rivals (it currently stands at 50 million), it is nevertheless expanding rapidly and is currently among the major participants. It hasn’t yet surpassed Spotify due to the lack of a free tier, but for those who pay, that milestone may not be far off.
8. Gaana – 50 Million
Although the Indian streaming platform, which was developed by the same country’s media behemoth Times Internet, isn’t well-known outside of Asia, India is a large country with a large population that is eager to pay for the music they enjoy. In November 2017, Gaana achieved a significant milestone that many streaming firms may never meet: 50 million users.
9. Anghami – 33 Million
Anghami has established itself as the most prosperous region-specific streaming music platform in the Middle East and Northern Africa, where many other businesses hadn’t invested much effort in development until recently, if at all. Through clever marketing and alliances with mobile companies, the service has been gaining subscribers for years, and these initiatives have helped the growing platform add 33 million members.
10. Deezer – 14 Million
According to a company official, there are 14 million users of the France-based streaming service as of a recent count. Interestingly, most of those millions are willing to pay for the privilege of listening, even though there are alternatives to listen for free. Even though the number of customers paying for the superior option isn’t increasing as quickly as it is for other firms on this list—9 million—Deezer may still be considered a profitable company.