Spotify has announced another quarter of record profits, marking a year since it first raised the price of its Premium plans. The Swedish audio streaming service reported an operating income of 266 million euros ($289 million) in the second quarter, a significant improvement compared to a loss of 247 million euros ($268 million) during the same period last year. Additionally, the number of monthly active users surged 14% year-over-year to reach 626 million.
“It’s an exciting time at Spotify. We keep innovating and demonstrating that we are not just a great product, but also an increasingly strong business,” stated CEO Daniel Ek. He added that the company’s progress has surpassed its own expectations, promising a positive outlook for the future.
In response to the strong earnings report, Spotify’s stock jumped nearly 14% in pre-market trading on Tuesday.
Earlier in June, Spotify announced an increase in prices for U.S. Premium users. Starting this month, individual plans will cost $1 more, bringing it to $12, while Duo plans will increase by $2 to $17, and Family plans will be $3 more at $20. This marked the first price hike in 13 years, with an average increase of $1 last July.
Despite the increased subscription costs, Spotify successfully added seven million net subscribers during the quarter, exceeding its earlier projections by one million.
As the leading audio streaming platform globally, Spotify users are reportedly the least likely to cancel their memberships, according to a Bloomberg analysis. However, the company has faced challenges in the past, experiencing a decline in stock value by more than two-thirds in 2022 due to several quarters of operating losses. Earlier this year, Spotify announced the layoff of 600 employees and later reduced its workforce by approximately 1,500 jobs, which represents about 17% of its staff.