Spotify Celebrates 60 Million Mark, May be the Future of Music

Spotify HQ

Spotify just announced that they have reached the 60 million mark. What's more is that, according to the biggest on demand streaming service, 15 million of those users are paying customers.

Before 2014 came to a close, the music streaming company has reached greater heights, Spotify shared on their website on Monday.

"We had an amazing 2014 at Spotify and owe it all to you, the music fans who listen, discover, share and celebrate music and artists with us every day of the year. And before 2014 turned into 2015, we reached 15 million subscribers and 60 million active users," Spotify announced in a statement.

It also shared a playlist composed of 24 tracks to celebrate, including: I Just Want to Celebrate (Rare Earth), Uptown Funk (Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson), Sing (Ed Sheeran), Touch the Sky (Kanye West), Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger (Daft Punk), Forework (Katy Perry), Run this Town (Rihanna, Jay-Z, Kanye West), and Younger - Kygo Remix (Seinabo Sey).

Last year, Spotify was caught in controversy after Taylor Swift pulled out all her music from the on-demand streaming service company.

"I'm not willing to contribute my life's work to an experiment that I don't feel fairly compensates the writers, producers, artists, and creators of this music. And I just don't agree with perpetuating the perception that music has no value and should be free," Swift told Yahoo in November last year.

Other artists like David Byrne (Talking Heads) and Thom Yorke (Radiohead) agreed with Swift, who went on to say that Spotify felt like a "grand experiment" and she tried it to see how it felt and she found out that "it didn't feel right."

Despite pulling out her music from Spotify, Swift still managed to top Billboard with her 1989 album. Spotify did not take a backseat in sales and active user count either, which makes most analysts believe that Spotify's model may well be the future of music.

Launched in 2008 by a Swedish start-up company, Spotify has indeed gone a long way. The online music streaming service offers music from EMI, Warner Music Group, Universal, and Sony. Advertisements pay for the free services, while premium members get to enjoy their music ad-free.