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Drake is the streaming emperor, but also a kingmaker. With his new album "Scorpion", the first to generate more than a billion listenings on music streaming platforms in a week, the rapper has helped to narrow the gap between the two leaders of the sector, Apple Music and Sportify, in terms of paying subscribers.
In the United States, first music market where "Scorpion" was listened more than 750 million times and where the streaming weighs 5.7 billion dollars in numbers business, Apple Music is now hitting Spotify with 21 to 21.5 million paying subscribers versus 22 to 22.5 million for the Swedish leader, according to information from the "Financial Times".
The platform of Apple returns from afar: a year ago, she accused the Atlantic side of a delay of four million on its rival (13 million paying subscribers against 17 for Spotify). Analysts are now predicting a reversal of the curve next month. By the end of the year, Apple could even have convinced 27 million subscribers with its pay offer, when Spotify will have seduced 24 million, according to internal forecasts consulted by the "Financial Times".
Spotify must rebadure shareholders and investors
The role played by Drake in this rocker remains difficult to measure, but Apple Music has clearly overtaken its competitor at the launch of "Scorpion". 24 hours after its release, the latter claimed 170 million plays against 132.5 for his Swedish rival, handicapped by a technical problem that forced him to publish the album two hours late.
A failure which is not without consequences for "Music Business Worldwide", according to which "some Spotify users even subscribed to the test offer of Apple Music just to listen to Scorpion while waiting for it to arrive on their favorite platform".
The Swede, listed on Wall Street since April, remains the world leader in music streaming with 75 million subscribers (50 million for Apple Music). But while investors are betting on a surge in subscribers, it must remain powerful on the world's largest music market, especially as it is confronted with powerful Gafas.
The "bundle" to seduce [19659006] "Spotify has always targeted music fans, mostly young people who have been the" early adopters "of streaming, adds Mark Mulligan, an badyst at Midia Research and interviewed by the Financial Times. A large part of this population is now absorbed, while Apple has a much larger base. They can appeal to more conventional users because Apple Music is already on their phones, with pre-recorded banking information.
While Amazon also claims tens of millions of paying subscribers, Spotify is stepping up initiatives to expand its base. In addition to a trial offer at $ 0.99 for three months for its premium version, the firm also offers a "bundle" with a subscription coupled to the Hulu video streaming platform.
But in this field offers coupled with audiovisual content, Apple, which invests heavily in the production of original content, could also quickly pose a real threat, according to the Anglo-Saxon press.
Basile Dekonink
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