iWorld
Saavn raises $100 mn; to move into video
MUMBAI: Move over hotstar.com. Competition is coming your way. Earlier, this year, the Neeraj Roy led music streamer Hungama.com raised around $100 million to expand its service into video delivery to its subscribers. Then Hooq.com announced its foray into the over the top (OTT) market. Now it’s the turn of New York headquartered Saavn to announce that it is going to move into delivering video content to its subscribers. The company late last night confirmed that it had managed to raise $100 million in a Series C round led by Tiger Global.
Among investors who also took part in the round figure: existing investors Bertelsmann India Investments, Steadview Capital, Liberty Media, and Mousse Partners, and new ones such as Qulvest, hedge funds from Hong Kong and a number of strategic individuals. Avendus Capital in Mumbai and LionTree Advisors advised on the deal. The $100 million fund raise values Saavn.com which started in 2007 at $300-400 million.
Saavn CEO Rishi Malhotra revealed that the service is adding a million monthly average users (MAU), with a total of around 14 million MAU currently and hopes to cross 20 million MAUs by end this year.
The company is banking on the mobile users to take up its music and video streaming service in a bigger way. Malhotra told techcrunch.com that almost 90 per cent of its subscribers are on mobile and have been averse to paying and hence Saavn has been focusing on an ad-supported model for its music streaming service so far.
A part of the $100 million it raised will be used to scale up its music streaming service which has a catalogue of 2 million plus songs, mostly from Bollywood. It wants to expand its sales force.
“The real purpose of this raise is to continue developing our product, acquiring a larger user base, and investing in the right components that make a healthy media company,” Malhotra told techcrunch.
“We want to become an entertainment ecosystem for mobile,” he continued. “That means new audio products and also video, absolutely. The exciting thing about the [Indian] market that we can be part Spotify, part Pandora, and part Netflix.”
The company has signed on Bollywood heart throb Ranbir Kapoor to promote Saavn in prime time commercials on mainline Hindi general entertainment channels in India.
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.
