Opening Pandora's Box: 200 Million Registered Listeners, 400 Curated Stations
Pandora revealed some impressive numbers today, starting with the fact that the streaming music service is now home to 200 million registered users. It took six years for Pandora to go from 0 to 100 million listeners after it launched in 2005, and then was able to double that number in less than two years.
"When we launched Pandora in 2005, we hoped to create a new way to discover and enjoy music that was completely personalized for each and every listener. We envisioned a time when artists of all kinds would thrive on radio, connecting with fans who loved exactly their kind of music," Pandora founder Tim Westergren stated in a blog post. "I have to admit, we had no idea what was in store! I has been, and continues to be, an extraordinary experience for all of us."
Image Source: Pandora
An infographic on Westergren's blog post claims Pandora now streams over 200 million songs before 10AM each day, or about 8,000 song per second. Last month, Pandora served up more than 1.49 billion hours of music. To put that figure into perspective, it would take a single person 170,510 years to listen to that much music nonstop.
Pandora's found widespread success in its Music Genome Project, which is an effort to introduce listeners to new songs they'll likely find appealing by analyzing their listening habits. Each song in the Music Genome Project is analyzed using up to 450 distinct musical characteristics. It's not a guarantee that every song played will be appealing to the listener, but if it isn't, a thumbs down button ensures it won't be streamed again.
In 2012, Pandora streamed 13 billion hours of music. More recently, a decision was made to cap free mobile listening to 40 hours per month due to rising royalty costs. Users who reach that ceiling can pony up $0.99 to unlock mobile listening for the remainder of the month.
"When we launched Pandora in 2005, we hoped to create a new way to discover and enjoy music that was completely personalized for each and every listener. We envisioned a time when artists of all kinds would thrive on radio, connecting with fans who loved exactly their kind of music," Pandora founder Tim Westergren stated in a blog post. "I have to admit, we had no idea what was in store! I has been, and continues to be, an extraordinary experience for all of us."
Image Source: Pandora
An infographic on Westergren's blog post claims Pandora now streams over 200 million songs before 10AM each day, or about 8,000 song per second. Last month, Pandora served up more than 1.49 billion hours of music. To put that figure into perspective, it would take a single person 170,510 years to listen to that much music nonstop.
Pandora's found widespread success in its Music Genome Project, which is an effort to introduce listeners to new songs they'll likely find appealing by analyzing their listening habits. Each song in the Music Genome Project is analyzed using up to 450 distinct musical characteristics. It's not a guarantee that every song played will be appealing to the listener, but if it isn't, a thumbs down button ensures it won't be streamed again.
In 2012, Pandora streamed 13 billion hours of music. More recently, a decision was made to cap free mobile listening to 40 hours per month due to rising royalty costs. Users who reach that ceiling can pony up $0.99 to unlock mobile listening for the remainder of the month.
