Spotify’s paid subscriber base grows to five million, one billion playlists created to date

Spotify is extending its dominant lead among music subscription services. CEO Daniel Ek today revealed that the company has over five million paid subscribers worldwide, with one million in the US alone. Back in July, that figure stood at four million. In all however, 20 million people are streaming music through Spotify, proof that its free, ad-supported tier continues to prove most popular with listeners. Additionally, Ek says that over one billion playlists have been created to date. That’s not entirely shocking since, in lieu of any “collection” support, playlists remain the primary method of organizing content on Spotify’s mobile apps.

Filling those playlists are over 20 million songs that Spotify claims have now been licensed globally. And in response to growing criticism regarding artist profits, the company says it has thus far paid out over $500 million to musicians.