# Where you should release your music

> Understand current listener and subscriber numbers on major digital service providers like Spotify, Apple, and YouTube to reach your fans where they listen

- URL: https://b00st.com/blog/where-you-should-release-your-stuff
- Published: 2022-06-08
- Authors: Jason R. Stevens, CFA
- Tags: music business, DSP, Efficient Promotion, Listener Consumption, Creator economy

## TL;DR

- Distribute music broadly across platforms, because the places music fans congregate keep changing.
- Spotify's Q1 2022 financial statements reported 132 million premium subscribers, the most of the services covered.
- Estimates put YouTube Music at 60-80 million, Apple Music at about 78.5 million and Amazon Music at about 68 million potential listeners.

![Headphones to the left, a mobile device in the middle, and a funky keychain with golden house keys on the right, all over a salmon background to highlight how TikTok is just one of the many ways consumers listen to your music today, in 2022.](https://b00st.com/static/images/where-you-should-release-your-stuff.jpg)

Let's dive into a common scenario [b00st.com](https://b00st.com) individual and institutional clients face every day: a new artist has fantastic music ready to go but is not yet set up on streaming platforms.

Which platforms should an artist prioritize? Setting up great profiles can be time consuming and labor-intensive. Afterall, time is money and ain't nobody got infinite amounts of either!

## Maximize potential ears: The more the merrier

Generally, across all businesses and industries, one should seek to _maximize the sales surface._ Musicians and their teams should be **maximizing the number of potential listeners and video viewers**. We, of course, are bullish about
the amazing ways on the free and open web we have to reach and market to these consumers. That said, an artist's
profile on a DSP platform like YouTube Music is "the store" from which they might sell a consumer a listen.

And prior to successful sales in the store there must be an unlocked door, an appealing storefront and a
potential means to actually engender a sale. Fortunately, artists have amazing tools on each of the different platforms out there to maximize these core business needs.

### Always multiple platforms

First of all, artists and their teams should be in constant search of new and exciting ways to get their music
and other content out there. The web is dynamic, fluid, and the places where music consumers congregate will change.
And change faster today than yesterday and faster tomorrow than today. And though usually given the shaft, artists
actually have fantastic tools to upload their music and other content to the various DSPs out there.

What does that all mean? _Either distribute broadly or lose out on listens, promotion, and a bigger fan base._

## DSP subscribers

In determining the maximum potential ears for listening we should start with none other than answering: _how many humans can listen on each platform?_

Fortunately, most of the major digital service providers are public companies; we have audited and reliable stated actuals
from management and those companies' financial reports.

> In case you're wondering, a great source of information about the future lies in major-tech companies' financial reports, called 10-Q filings, along with their conference call transcripts. Both are freely available by Googling `XYZ company 10-Q` or `XYZ company earnings call transcript`. All this is available electronically via the [SEC's EDGAR database](https://www.sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/companysearch.html), as well.

### Today's numbers for Alphabet (YouTube), Apple, Spotify, and Others

Despite that public companies must report information, unfortunately they are required to report _only material information,_ and frankly, the music industry isn't large enough to be material for Alphabet, Apple, or Amazon, versus their
other businesses. However, we do have _some_ information from them and something's always better than nothing.

We'll also rely on some third party research from the excellent media and entertainment research firm [MIDiA](https://www.midiaresearch.com/blog/music-subscriber-market-shares-q2-2021).

#### Alphabet's latest - a guesstimate of 60-80 million

YouTube is an incredibly important part of Alphabet's business. As widely known, YouTube Music has been and remains
a core area of focus for YouTube as an organization.

Though we've combed through Alphabet's [latest 10-Q](https://abc.xyz/investor/static/pdf/20220427_alphabet_10Q.pdf) and
[conference call transcripts](https://www.fool.com/earnings/call-transcripts/2022/04/26/alphabet-a-shares-googl-q1-2022-earnings-call-tran/), we can't nail down a specific, total number for YouTube music. See their investor relations site: [abc.xyz](https://abc.xyz).

As last reported in September of 2021, YouTube Music had crossed 50 million subscribers. Using growth rates provided
for subscribers in YouTube Premium (including Music), we suggest assuming about **60-80 million** potential
listeners for YouTube Music.

#### Apple's latest...60 million - from 2019

Apple is notoriously as quiet as possible about their business operations, not evening mentioning the words _streaming_
or _music_ within their [latest quarterly financial statements](https://investor.apple.com/sec-filings/sec-filings-details/default.aspx?FilingId=15765999). Apple Music would be part of the line item throughout descriptively titled
_Services_.

The last time they publicly released Apple Music subscriber numbers was in 2019 via the legendary [Eddy Cue](https://www.numerama.com/tech/529295-60-millions-dabonnes-deal-avec-pnl-fin-ditunes-rencontre-avec-eddy-cue-boss-dapple-music.html). See their investor relations site: [investors.apple.com](https://investors.apple.com).

MIDiA estimates that they have 15% market share of 524 million global subscribers, about **78.5 million** potential listeners.

#### Amazon Music - Greater than 55 million - from 2020

Amazon also avoids disclosing subscriber numbers for its music subscription numbers. They did mention having more than
55 million subscribers as of January 2020 but as of this print the date is June 2022...Snark aside, see their
financials: [ir.aboutamazon.com](https://ir.aboutamazon.com/overview).

If we use the same MIDiA numbers as we did with Apple, Amazon should have about **68 million** global subscribers for
their music platform potential.

#### Spotify - Last but the lead @ 132 million

Spotify stands far apart from the three major public companies above as a smaller, more nimble and forthright
public company with a singular focus on its music products.

In particular, its [Q1 financial statements](https://s29.q4cdn.com/175625835/files/doc_financials/2022/q1/64ab3809-23ed-4810-856a-eeb4fec9c338.pdf) specify exactly **132 million** premium subscribers, which you can check for yourself
by using `ctrl-f` to search for "subscriber".

> Thanks to [Spotify](https://spotify.com) for being transparent and proud about their business metrics. It's too bad that corporate governance is such an afterthought for the other technology firms listed herein.

### Growth and investment dictates tomorrow's numbers

Totalling our numbers here we get $339 = 60 + 79 + 68 + 132$. That means about the _size of the United State's population has a streaming service._

Our bold assertion: **this will expand substantially over the coming decade**.

Expect the landscape and dominance
of platforms today to change tomorrow. If we, along with most major players in the music industry, are right, then
that means _more meat on the bone for artists and their teams._ To say the least, that's exciting.

### A few links to helpful tools and services

Below are a few links to get you started including a release distribution aggregator and some major platforms'
artist-specific tools.

- [Distrokid](https://distrokid.com/) - A release aggregator we use ourselves!
- [Spotify for artists](https://artists.spotify.com/en)
- [YouTube for artists](https://artists.youtube.com/)
- [Apple for artists](https://artists.apple.com/)
- [Amazon Music for artists](https://artists.amazon.com)

If you need help you can always ask a question in the [b00st.com community](https://community.b00st.com/) and our
team + other b00st.com clients will do their best to help out!

### What next

Once all the right stores are open and music is about to be released, head over to [b00st.com](https://b00st.com) and think about what
kind of budget you'd like to back your project with. Pro clients of course should consult their b00st.com executive
for recommendations, if needed.

Login and press the _Real Easy Ads_ button, add some suga, some spice, and voila - marketing is on autopilot.

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##### DISLAIMER

The author of this post is the principal of [Recondite Capital](https://reconditecapital.com), a US-based Registered Investment Advisor in Illinois state. Clients own shares in Apple, Google, and potentially Spotify (though there are no plans for share purchases at current valuations, as of the closing price on 2022-06-07). The words herein are not to be construed as advice or recommendations to purchase, sell, or transact in financial securities of any sort. Furthermore, _none of the writing herein should be construed as financial advice of any sort._