Spotify shares slump 9% despite soaring subscriber numbers

Company reached 75 million premium users, but not enough to please investors

Spotify founder Daniel Ek downplayed the impact of competition from Apple and Amazon (Getty)

Spotify’s subscribers soared in the first quarter but investors were still disappointed.

The company’s shares slid 9 per cent following its first results as a public company after it reported that it had reached 75 million premium users, matching Spotify’s forecast but falling short of market expectations.

The music streaming service is aiming to cement its position as the dominant player in a huge and rapidly growing global market. Its shares had climbed 14 per cent since it debuted on the stock market last month.

But despite the increase in subscriber numbers, up 45 per cent year on year, Spotify lost €41m (£36m) on €1.14bn of sales in its latest quarter, though that was lower than analysts had predicted.

Spotify founder Daniel Ek downplayed the impact of competition from Apple and Amazon.

“When we look at this, we don’t really think that this is a winner-take-all market. In fact, we think multiple services will exist in the market and we are all in a growing market,” he said.

The Swedish tech firm has a comfortable lead over its rivals so far, with more than twice as many subscribers as its nearest competitor, Apple Music.

It has looked to broaden its offering with podcasts and is seeking to negotiate better terms with music rights holders in order to turn a profit.

Spotify was valued at $26bn when it floated on the New York Stock Exchange last month. It emerged this week that one of its biggest investors, Sony Music, had cashed in half of its shares.