> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.hypebot.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Free Music Services Account For More Than 80% Of All U.S. Streaming
- URL: https://www.hypebot.com/free-music-services-account-for-more-than-80-of-all-us-streaming/
- Published: 2016-09-21T14:28:00.000Z
- Updated: 2016-09-21T14:28:00.000Z
- Description: Free music services account for 80% of all streaming the in U.S., according to a new Music Watch survey. That's bad news for rightsholders, since free services pay far less. Continue reading [https://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2016/09/free-music-services-account-for-more-than-80-of-all-us-streaming.ht
- Author: Bruce Houghton
- Tags: Music Business, Music Tech, Streaming, Abu Dhabi Media, Apple Inc., Apple Music, music industry, Pandora Radio, Spotify, Streaming media, Universal Music Group, Vevo, YouTube, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-01-21 10:22

**[![Freemusic](http://hypebot.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451b36c69e201b8d21f766f970c-150wi "Freemusic")](http://hypebot.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451b36c69e201b8d21f766f970c-popup?ref=hypebot.com)Free music services account for 80% of all streaming the in U.S.,** according to a new **Music Watch** survey. That's **bad news** for rightsholders, since free services pay far less per stream than paid. But it's also a reminder of how much **room for growth** there is for paid services

\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

Pandora and YouTube are the clear leaders in streaming music the second quarter of 2016, according to a new [Music Watch](http://www.musicwatchinc.com/?ref=hypebot.com) survey. 30% of the time consumers spent streaming music occurred on Pandora, followed by YouTube at 27%. Spotify's free service accounted for 18% of online listening, iHeartRadio 5% and Vevo 2% for a total of 82% for all free ad-supported music services combined.Among paid on-demand music subscription services Spotify Premium accounted for 7% followed by just 2% for Apple Music. [![image from www.musicwatchinc.com](http://hypebot.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451b36c69e201b7c895a68c970b-450wi "image from www.musicwatchinc.com")](http://hypebot.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451b36c69e201b7c895a68c970b-popup?ref=hypebot.com)

*click on image to enlarge*

“Pandora’s strength in the market represents a major opportunity to migrate listeners to new tiers of services, including on-demand and revised lower-price offerings,” said Russ Crupnick, managing partner of MusicWatch. “At the same time Spotify is leading growth in the on-demand segment. Although Spotify Premium has a lead over Apple Music it is important to keep in mind that Spotify had quite a head start, and many Apple users are still in the trial phase.”**Methodology:** The MusicWatch Audiocensus is a monthly tracking study of internet users in the U.S. age 13 and older. The share of listening hours is based on the size of the audience for the respective services and the amount of time users spent listening to that service in an average week.

Related articles

[![](http://i.zemanta.com/AVcyXSnxCyzA5kjVRb-7_80_80.jpg)](https://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2016/09/warner-music-group-signs-pandora-direct-deal-paving-way-for-new-spotify-apple-music-competitor-.html)[Warner Music Group Signs Pandora Direct Deal Paving Way For New Spotify, Apple Music Competitor](https://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2016/09/warner-music-group-signs-pandora-direct-deal-paving-way-for-new-spotify-apple-music-competitor-.html)

[![](http://i.zemanta.com/354888853_80_80.jpg)](https://www.hypebot.com/taylor-swift-chose-not-to-fight-youtube-draaft/)[Why Taylor Swift Chose Not To Fight YouTube](https://www.hypebot.com/taylor-swift-chose-not-to-fight-youtube-draaft/)

[![](http://i.zemanta.com/370225518_80_80.jpg)](http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/in-todays-music-industry-streaming-is-everything-almost.html?ref=hypebot.com)[In Today's Music Industry, Streaming Is Everything (Almost)](http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/in-todays-music-industry-streaming-is-everything-almost.html?ref=hypebot.com)

[![](http://i.zemanta.com/AVcjxAJbfGxcqMFi2FGN_80_80.jpg)](https://www.hypebot.com/pandora-signs-direst-deals-with-umg-sony-30-indies-paving-way-for-new-music-service-wmg-is-last-hold/)[Pandora Signs Direct Deals With UMG, Sony, 30 Indies Paving Way For New Music Service – WMG Last Holdout – hypebot](https://www.hypebot.com/pandora-signs-direst-deals-with-umg-sony-30-indies-paving-way-for-new-music-service-wmg-is-last-hold/)

[![](http://i.zemanta.com/372818854_80_80.jpg)](http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/17-ways-to-promote-your-music-online.html?ref=hypebot.com)[17 Ways To Promote Your Music Online](http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/17-ways-to-promote-your-music-online.html?ref=hypebot.com)

[![](http://i.zemanta.com/373178406_80_80.jpg)](http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/10-things-artists-must-have-to-succeed-today-in-the-music-bu.html?ref=hypebot.com)[10 Things Artists Must Have To Succeed Today In The Music Business](http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/10-things-artists-must-have-to-succeed-today-in-the-music-bu.html?ref=hypebot.com)

[![](http://i.zemanta.com/374805163_80_80.jpg)](http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-pandora-20160913-snap-story.html?ref=hypebot.com)[Pandora takes on Spotify and Apple Music with new streaming services](http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-pandora-20160913-snap-story.html?ref=hypebot.com)

[![](http://i.zemanta.com/374888892_80_80.jpg)](https://www.japantoday.com/category/technology/view/pandora-takes-on-spotify-apple-with-new-streaming-services?ref=hypebot.com)[Technology › Pandora takes on Spotify, Apple with new streaming services](https://www.japantoday.com/category/technology/view/pandora-takes-on-spotify-apple-with-new-streaming-services?ref=hypebot.com)

[![](http://i.zemanta.com/375102486_80_80.jpg)](http://mashable.com/2016/09/15/pandora-plus-launch/?ref=hypebot.com)[Pandora takes the first step toward on-demand streaming with $5 ad-free option](http://mashable.com/2016/09/15/pandora-plus-launch/?ref=hypebot.com)