14 DAY TRIAL // Spotify has only been available in the US for less than a month, but the media hype and heavy marketing have paid off, the service is said to have about 1.4 million users already, 175,000 of which are paying subscribers.
Spotify launched after a two year wait in the US last month and it hoped that the hype leading up to the launch and the name it already enjoyed in the country would help it to a good start.
Which is exactly what is happening, though it's probably too early to tell if this is a sign that Spotify is ready to conquer the American market or whether the initial hype won't be enough to carry it further.
The fact that it got 1.4 million users, according to All Things D, citing unnamed sources, is a good sign especially since the service is not open to all in the country and requires an invite.
It seems that the artificial scarcity was mostly a gimmick, if 1.4 million people got invites, there's little reason to believe that there were many that were left out.
More important than users, which run the free, ad-supported version of the service and aren't as important revenue-wise, is the subscriber numbers, Spotify is said to have 175,000 already, a conversion rate of about 12.5 percent.
It's an encouraging number, though it's smaller than what the site gets in Europe. Granted, the free service is more limited in Europe, US users get a six months trial with more free music each month than the regular free tier.
Spotify is facing a tougher competition in the US than it is in Europe, but it's off to a good start. It remains to be seen if the growth rate can be sustained. Spotify is yet to uncover its trump card though, Facebook integration which is said to be coming.