6.5 million users are now paying for Apple Music, the company's music streaming and download service that offers users unlimited access to over 30 million tracks. A further 8.5 million are still trialling it, according to Apple CEO Tim Cook, who dropped the figures during the WSJD Live conference last night. Apple music costs £9.99 ($9.99) per month, with family accounts going for £14.99 ($14.99) per month.
Considering rival Spotify boasts around 20 million paying users after a full seven years of operation, that Apple's netted over six million subscribers since its launch on June 30 is impressive. However, it's likely that a few of those customers currently paying for the service simply forgot to turn off their automatic subscription renewal at the end of Apple's free three-month trial period, even with Apple's reminder emails.
"I think it’s fabulous, and to have over 15 million on there, and 6.5 million in the paid category, I’m really happy about it. And I think the runway here is really good," said Cook, according to CNET.
In August, Apple revealed it had 11 million users on the service just five weeks after it launched, all of which would have been in the trial period. That suggests that nearly 60 percent of users agreed to pay for the service after the trial period ended.
While Apple's total user base of 15 million users is impressive, it pales in comparison to Spotify's 75 million, the vast majority of which are using the free ad-supported service. Apple has yet to release the Android version of its Apple Music app, or offer the ability to share playlists and tracks in browsers and social networks, both of which will likely bring more users on board.
