🟢 In 2015, Apple tried to take down Spotify! 😱
- Threatened to remove Spotify from the App Store
- Took 30% of its revenue
- Blocked app updates 🚫
But Spotify didn’t back down and managed to surpass the world’s biggest company. How?
1- In 2006, Daniel Ek founded Spotify in Sweden. 🎧
At that time, the music industry was in a coma:
- Content piracy was burning through 50% of revenues 😬
- CD sales were in freefall
- iTunes was the king of legal downloads
Everyone said streaming was doomed to fail! 😶
2- But by 2015, Spotify was thriving:
- 75 million active users 🎉
- Presence in 58 countries 🌍
- Valuation: $8.4 billion 💰
Then Apple entered the game!
Its weapon? Apple Music 🎵
Its advantage? Complete control over the App Store 😏
3- Apple’s strategy was brutally aggressive:
- Taking a 30% commission on all subscriptions 💸
- Banning external payment links 🚫
- Blocking app updates that encouraged users to purchase directly from Spotify’s website 🚷
- Pre-installing Apple Music on 1 billion devices 📱
Apple was slowly but surely tightening its grip…
4- But Daniel Ek made a shocking move:
Instead of surrendering, he went nuclear! 💣
He filed an antitrust complaint against Apple with the European Union. ⚖️
Apple’s reaction?
“Spotify wants to enjoy the benefits of a free app without actually being free!” 😏
5- Spotify launched TimeToPlayFair.com and exposed Apple’s game! 😮
Apple’s actions:
- Rejected Spotify’s app updates 12 times ⛔
- Blocked Spotify from working on the HomePod 🏠🎵
- Prevented Spotify from integrating with Siri 🤖
- Restricted user communication options 💬
Spotify’s boldness in challenging Apple shook the tech world…
6- The war intensified:
- The European Union launched a formal investigation ⚖️
- The U.S. Congress began questioning Apple’s practices 🏛️
- Other developers joined the fight 🤝
- South Korea changed its laws 🇰🇷
The pressure on Apple kept mounting…
7- 2021: The First Victory! 🎉
Apple was forced to allow external payment links.
The infamous 30% “Apple Tax” began to crumble. 💸
And here’s the surprising part:
Throughout this entire battle, Spotify kept growing! 🚀
8- Spotify’s growth was insane:
- 2015: 75 million users
- 2017: 140 million
- 2019: 248 million
- 2021: 365 million
- 2023: 489 million! 🚀
In its battle with the world’s biggest company, Spotify gained 414 million users.
How did this happen? 🤔
9- Daniel Ek’s strategy was brilliant:
- Made the fight public 🗣️
- United developers 🤝
- Focused on user experience 🎧
- Continued innovating (podcasts, audiobooks) 📚🎙️
- Never backed down 💪
They turned Apple’s pressure into free advertising! 👏
#Strategy #Spotify
10- Today:
- Spotify: 489 million users 🚀
- Apple Music: 88 million users 📉
That “small Swedish startup” is now 5.5 times bigger than Apple Music! 😎
Not only did they survive, but they thrived and ruled. 👑
Business lesson:
When a giant tries to crush you, don’t hide!
Fight publicly, find allies, and turn their size into their weakness.
#Inspiration #Spotify #Success
