Image credit: Stéphan Valentin

Unlimited BLACKPINK and BTS at no cost for South Koreans as Spotify take away the barrier of entry to music streaming for the country.

Spotify are celebrating the incredible success of South Korean music this week. They revealed that global K-Pop streams on Spotify have grown 362% since 2018. But the service itself has only been available in South Korea since 2021.

Now, Spotify are making their platform available for free in South Korea. Since launch, Spotify have only provided their Premium music subscription to the market. Now users in South Korea, the seventh-largest recorded music market, will be able to sign up and listen on their free, ad-supported tier.

Spotify free offers unlimited music distribution with limitations on certain mobile devices. Free listeners will have adverts interspersed between their playback. Free listeners also don’t gain certain Premium benefits like free Audiobook listening.

The country has a hugely successful music market thanks to the success of K-Pop as well as the avid music listeners within the country itself. Spotify revealed that their K-Pop hub, ‘K-Pop ON! (온)‘ has grown 5,600% since 2015.

Spotify’s General Manager for Asia Pacific, Gautam Talwar said the the launch of a free tier “means huge potential for new audiences, discoverability and ultimately, more revenue for artists”.

Whilst some call for an end to free streaming, Spotify remain convinced of its power to convert paying users. In their announcement, Spotify wrote: “Around the world, most subscribers begin their Spotify journey with a Free account. Free users can choose to upgrade to the Premium experience for on-demand, ad-free music listening at any time.”

Artists around the world can get their music heard on Spotify and other top streaming services. Reach global audiences and get paid from every single play of your songs.

Sign up for free music distribution at www.routenote.com today.