Spotify losses widen as streaming site pushes ahead with expansion plans

Spotify posted an operating loss of €93 million from 2013, compared with a loss of €80 million a year earlier

Spotify may have posted a 74 per cent rise in revenues in 2013, but the site's operating loss widened as well due to investments in product development and international expansion.

Stockholm-based Spotify, which provides free on-demand music or ad-free tunes for paying customers, posted an operating loss of €93 million from 2013, compared with a loss of €80 million in 2012.

Sales grew to €747 million in 2013 from €430 million a year earlier.About 91 per cent of Spotify's revenue came from subscriptions, with the rest coming from advertising.

The company earlier this month said its paying subscriber base has risen to 12.5 million from 10 million in May.

Spotify, which was founded in 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon, described 2013 as a year when it made “a clear transition from desktop to mobile” fuelled by its launch of a free tier for its mobile apps.