Spotify launches in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore with ad partners

It launches with advertising partners Heineken, KFC, Maxis and Standard Chartered in Malaysia; CSL one2free and McDonalds in Hong Kong; and H&M and Subway in Singapore. 

The service made its first foray into Asia-Pacific in May last year, launching in New Zealand and Australia. The launch followed the appointment of Dan Brody, general manager for Asia-Pacific, in October 2011.

Spotify draws its revenue from two main sources, an ad-supported free service via computer and an ad-free multi-platform premium service for about US$6 a month (HK$48 in Hong Kong).  

The service currently has six million paying users out of 24 million listeners. In 2012, it is estimated to have made about US$80 million in advertising revenue (the company declines to disclose revenue figures). 

The growth of music services like Spotify and Pandora has been hailed as a boon to the music industry because, unlike online download services like iTunes, these platforms enable music discovery with shareable playlists, integration with Facebook and Spotify also offers a customisable 'radio' service. 

In line with its expansion plans, Spotify has also recently appointed a new global B2B marketing and brand experience lead, Amy Vale, from mobile ad network Mojiva, to strengthen relationships with marketers and improve its brand advertising offering. it has also engaged Lewis PR as its public relations agency in the region.