Spotify’s streaming music app was installed on 43 percent of all Dutch smartphones in the third quarter, making it the market leader in the Netherlands by far in terms of app installations, according to Telecompaper's Dutch Apps Market report for Q3. Still, Telecompaper is seeing some shifts in the market division of streaming music providers. Spotify's installed base is no longer growing, and YouTube Music has moved into second place.
After years of increase among Spotify’s installed base, growth seems to have slowed almost to a halt this year. The app’s installed base lifted by 9 percentage points in the two years to Q3 2020. For Q3 2021, the base went up by only 1 percentage point on an annual basis.
Installed base rises only for YouTube Music
YouTube Music showed continuous growth, with a measured installed base of 14 percent in Q3 2021 against 11 percent the year earlier. The actual installed base of YouTube Music is higher since the app is a standard part of the package of apps that smartphone manufacturers are required to provide on Android smartphones. The measured installed base provides a good indication of the percentage of Dutch people who consciously use the YouTube Music app.
The installed base of both Apple Music and Deezer did not change significantly between Q3 2021 and Q3 2018. The installed base of Apple Music fluctuated by 3-5 percent and the one of Deezer by 2-4 percent. As with YouTube Music, the measured installed base of Apple Music provides a good indication of the percentage of Dutch people who use the app, since Apple Music is also installed by default on iPhones.
Spotify most heavily used music service
In addition to have the highest installed base, the Spotify app is also the most intensively used, by an average of 115 minutes per week per user. Just as with the installed base of the Spotify app, the intensity of use of that app has also decreased slightly in the quarter. Users of the Apple Music and Deezer apps used these apps for 62 to 65 minutes per week respectively.
More than half of users have a paid account
The report also shows that the Netherlands is a lucrative country for streaming music services. Over half (55%) of all streaming music app users had a paid account at end September. This was highest among 20-29 year olds, at 77 percent. Spotify's quarterly figures for Q3 showed that 45 percent of all monthly active users worldwide had a paid account.
Account sharing hardly a problem in the streaming music market
Account sharing, where someone uses another's paid account for free, is hardly a problem with streaming music services, unlike streaming video services. A total of 4 percent of all streaming music app users used someone else's account in Q3. This percentage was highest among young people aged 16-19, at 8 percent. The low percentage is mainly due to the high degree of personalization, the fact that only one simultaneous audio stream is possible and because streaming music services do not allow people to set up multiple user profiles, as is possible with streaming video services.
The above figures are based on Telecompaper's recently published Dutch Apps Market 2021 Q3 report, based on the Telecompaper Consumer Insights Panel. The poll was conducted in the third quarter of 2021 among more than 5,000 respondents. The panel consists of members between the ages of 16 and 80. Outcomes are stratified by age, gender and education. Contact research@telecompaper.com to order a copy of the latest edition of the report or to receive a customized market analysis.
