The American streaming service Apple Music has for the first time surpassed its Swedish competitor Spotify in the number of subscribers in the United States, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reports , citing sources. As of February, Apple Music had 28 million subscribers in the US versus Spotify’s 26 million, the publication writes. Every month, the number of subscribers for Apple Music grows by an average of 2.6–3%, for Spotify – by 1.5–2%, WSJ interlocutors noted.

The services did not officially disclose this data. The figures cited by the publication take into account only paid subscriptions, excluding users who use free or trial versions of Apple Music and Spotify applications, the publication notes.

It was expected that Apple Music would overtake Spotify in the number of subscribers in the US six months ago, but the Swedish service has focused all its efforts on maintaining its leading position, writes WSJ. In March, Spotify filed a complaint against Apple with the European Commission. The company complained that Apple takes a 30% commission from service developers when purchasing their applications through the App Store. This leads to an “artificial increase” in prices, which eventually become higher than the prices of Apple Music, the Swedish company claims. Apple denies all accusations.

Spotify still occupies a leading position in the global market, WSJ recalls. According to the company, at the end of last year it had 207 million active users, 96 of whom were paying for a subscription or signed up for a trial period. The remaining users chose the free version of the service. Apple Music, which does not have a free version, reported 50 million subscribers.

WSJ: Apple Music has overtaken Spotify in the number of subscribers in the US