iWorld
Octro Inc appoints Arup Das as chief technology officer
Kolkata: Mobile gaming company Octro Inc has announced the appointment of Arup Das as chief technology officer. He will be based in its Delhi-NCR office.
Das is a seasoned business leader who brings more than 23 years of experience in areas such as ERP, Data Science / Data Engineering, Cloud Computing, and other digital offerings. He most recently served as chief technology officer (CTO) & chief product officer (CPO) at a fintech company, Goals101. His past professional stints also include Aristocrat Technologies, R&D, Cisco, and Nucleus Software.
Octro Inc CEO Saurabh Aggarwal said, “We are very excited to have Arup on board with us as our CTO. Octro as a company has grown over the last many years and as we embark on our next phase of growth, I am confident that Arup, with his experience and expertise, will be able to contribute to Octro’s growth and enable us to take Octro to the next level. We look forward to working closely with Arup and achieve bigger goals while creating scalable leisure options for the world at large”.
On his joining, Das said, “The online gaming space has always been exciting to me, and with the recent growth it has witnessed in India & globally, I am even more ecstatic to have an opportunity to work with Octro Inc, a pioneer in this space. I am looking forward to adding value to the organization and be an integral part of Octro’s journey in becoming one of the leading gaming companies worldwide”.
Das is an MBA (Palmer Scholar) from the Wharton Business School, MS in Computer Vision / Image Processing from the University of Calgary, and a BE in Computer Science (University Gold Medalist) from Jadavpur University.
iWorld
Spotify Q1 revenue hits €4.5bn as users cross 760 million globally
Subscriber growth and margins rise as platform bets big on AI and discovery
LONDON: Spotify has kicked off 2026 on a strong note, reporting first-quarter revenue of €4.5 billion, up 14 per cent year-on-year in constant currency, as its global user base swelled past 760 million.
The streaming giant said monthly active users rose 12 per cent year-on-year to 761 million, while premium subscribers climbed 9 per cent to 293 million. The steady rise in both free and paid users signals continued demand for its expanding mix of music, podcasts and audiobooks.
Profitability also struck a chord. Gross margin improved by around 140 basis points to 33 per cent, marking one of the company’s strongest first-quarter performances to date. Operating income reached €715 million, comfortably ahead of expectations.
Spotify co-CEO Alex Norström said, “We surpassed 760 million MAU, delivered on the subscriber growth we aimed to achieve, and saw healthy engagement from existing users, reactivations and new users alike.” He added that increased listening and viewing activity in key markets such as the United States reflects confidence in sustained growth and low churn.
The company’s other co-CEO, Gustav Söderström, pointed to long-term ambition, saying the platform’s scale, creator ecosystem and investments in personalisation are opening up “new growth vectors” across formats and user engagement.
Revenue growth was largely driven by the premium segment, which rose 10 per cent to €4.1 billion, supported by price increases and stable average revenue per user of €4.76. However, the ad-supported business saw a 5 per cent dip to €385 million, though it still posted a modest 3 per cent increase in constant currency terms.
Cash generation remained robust, with free cash flow at €824 million for the quarter and €3.2 billion over the past 12 months. The company also benefited from lower-than-expected operating expenses, including €49 million in reduced social charges linked to share-based compensation.
Beyond the numbers, Spotify is leaning into product innovation. New AI-driven features such as “Taste Profile” and “Prompted Playlist” aim to give users more control over recommendations, while tools like “SongDNA” and “About the Song” deepen music discovery. The platform is also expanding audiobook charts in the United States and United Kingdom to boost engagement in newer formats.
Looking ahead, Spotify expects momentum to continue into the second quarter, forecasting 778 million monthly active users, 299 million subscribers, revenue of €4.8 billion and operating income of €630 million.
With €8.8 billion in cash and 7,258 employees, the company appears well-positioned to keep its growth story in rhythm as competition in digital entertainment intensifies.
