Spotify hits 130 million subscribers amid Covid-19

Spotify has reached 130 million paid subscribers, despite initial concerns over how the Covid-19 crisis could affect listening habits.

The music-streaming platform says it gained six million subscribers in the first quarter of 2020.

It said the figures fell into the higher end of what had been predicted before the coronavirus outbreak.

But analysts have warned Spotify's quarterly results may not be as positive as the company suggests.

Spotify said a double-digit rise in quarterly revenue had helped offset a decline in ad sales, which contributed less than 10% of its overall revenue.

“Despite all the turbulence around the world, we hit pretty much all the metrics,” chief executive Daniel Ek told Reuters.

The platform had begun to see a fall in user numbers in February among countries hit hardest by the virus, including Spain and Italy, he said.

But there had been a "meaningful recovery" over the past month.