Spotify Supports the Mexican Music Community Affected by COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has unleashed a crisis never before seen in different industries. Lockdowns around the world are changing people's consumption habits, from the content they consume to the time they spend doing it. But they also have had a huge impact on the content they no longer consume, including live music.

"At AMPROFON we will do our best to ensure music is heard. Our industry is made up by a vast community of talent and much of it has been affected, particularly by the cancellation of live events," said Director General of the Mexican Association of Producers of Phonograms and Videograms (AMPROFON) Guillermo González King in an interview with El Economista.

This is why Spotify joined the initiative Música México COVID-19 (MMC-19) spearheaded by AMPROFON to help the musicians community in Mexico. Through the Spotify’s COVID-19 Music Relief program, the Swedish streaming platform will make an initial donation to the project and then match each dollar that is donated.

"In the face of this crisis, Spotify is committed to the entire industry to support artists and creators affected by the pandemic. While streaming continues to play a key role in continuing to connect creators with their audiences and serve as a source of income, many other music-related activities have had to stop for now,” said Spotify Director General Mia Nygren in a statement.

Making the Best of a Bad Situation

But as in any crisis, there will always be losers and winners. Due to lockdowns throughout the world, in 1Q20 Spotify’s paid music subscribers surged to 130 million while monthly active users increased 31 percent from a year earlier, in line with the company’s forecast. Meanwhile, the company’s revenue rose 22 percent to €1.85 billion (US$2.01 billion) but missed the average analyst estimate of €1.86 billion (US$2.02 billion).

Warner Music, meanwhile, announced yesterday it will resume its plans to go public and is preparing an Initial Public Offering (IPO) amid a rally in streaming platforms during the COVID-19 pandemic. The US record industry giant will sell 70 million shares at a price of US$23 and US$26, so the proceeds from its debut scheduled for June 2 could amount to up to US$1.82 billion, which would value Warner Music at US$13.3 billion, according to Reuters. 

Early in 2018, Warner Music Group topped US$1 billion in overall quarterly revenue for the first time in more than a decade. Total revenue for the New York based company increased 14 percent to US$1.045 billion, from US$917 million in the previous quarter.