Spotify was downloaded more than five million times in Japan in 2022, which made it the leading music app in terms of downloads during that year. It was followed by Amazon Music and LINE Music, which were both downloaded more than three million times.
Most popular on-demand music streaming services Japan 2020
According to an online survey conducted in October 2020 among users of subscription music streaming services, the most used service was Amazon Prime Music with 569 respondents. Amazon Prime Music was followed by Spotify and Apple Music.
AWA Music has become a popular streaming service in Japan due to its wide selection of music, personalised recommendation system, and various subscription plans. It has also become popular in other countries due to its availability in multiple languages.
According to a survey conducted in Japan in November 2022, almost 64 percent of respondents used YouTube for listening to music. The streaming giant was the most commonly used method of listening to music in Japan, followed by subscription-based music streaming services and television.
The accessibility of certain Japanese artists is determined by talent agencies themselves. For example, Johnny & Associates is a Japanese talent agency that is home to generations of popular male idols. Despite having 17 groups and over 20 solo idols, only one idol group is available for streaming on Spotify: ARASHI.
Spotify has approximately 365 million monthly active users in over 180 countries in the world. Despite the extensive global coverage, there are some countries where you can't access Spotify, including China, Ethiopia, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Iran, Iraq, Myanmar, Cuba and Venezuela.
Just one day after the video surfaced online, iHeartMedia and Entercom pulled Wallen's music from hundreds of radio stations. And Wallen, country music's most popular artist for streaming, was pulled from the leading platforms' curated playlists, including 14 playlists from Spotify and 21 from Apple Music.
Spotify was downloaded more than five million times in Japan in 2022, which made it the leading music app in terms of downloads during that year. It was followed by Amazon Music and LINE Music, which were both downloaded more than three million times.
Japan is the Second Largest Music Market in the World
Japan has variety of music genres include J-pop, J-rock, J-hip hop, Japanese reggae, Japanese Jazz, Japanoise, Anime Music, Game music, Traditional Minyo, Traditional Wadaiko, Traditional Kagura, Traditional Dengaku, Traditional Gagaku and so on.
As an extension of this, Korean food and fashion continues to find new fans through the visuals and culture associated with K-Pop genre. However, what Spotify won't tell you is that the platform doesn't come close to being the most popular music streaming service in South Korea.
According to a survey conducted in Japan in December 2020, almost 81 percent of the respondents liked Japanese pop, rock, or dance music. About one quarter of the respondents stated to like music that was related to anime, voice actors and actresses, video games, and vocaloids.
As you can see from the graph above, as in the 2023 report, the most-used social media platform in Japan is LINE, with 82.5% of Internet users aged 16 to 64 are using it. It is followed by Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. (This time, YouTube was excluded from the scope.)
Japanese messaging app Line has just launched its own streaming service in the country, edging in ahead of both Spotify and Apple Music in the territory. Line Music boasts a catalogue of 1.5 million tracks from labels including Sony, Universal, and Japan's Avex Group.
Line Music launched in Japan in June 2015. Google Play Music launched in Japan in September 2015. For Line Music in Japan, students can only pay a subsidized ¥ 300 per month with a valid student card as opposed to the standard ¥ 1000.
Japanese users will have the option to either stream for free (with ads) or opt for Spotify's ad-free paid subscription, which will cost 980 yen per month (or roughly $9.60). This make Spotify Japan's first freemium streaming service.
The current number-one on the chart as of the issue dated July 26, 2023, is "Idol" by Yoasobi.
"W/X/Y" by Tani Yuuki was the most popular streaming song in Japan in 2022, with more than 328 million streamings recorded from November 2021 to November 2022. It was followed by Yuuri's "Betelgeuse" and Saucy Dog's "Cinderella Boy."
Guinness World Records certified that Thelma Aoyama's "Soba ni Iru ne" is the best-selling full-track digital download single in Japan with over 8 million copies.
Amazon Prime Video – Japan's Most Popular Streaming Platform
Data compiled by GEM Partners, estimated Amazon Prime Video to have a 12% share of the SVOD market in 2021, based on revenue. In terms of subscriptions, Prime Video actually sits at the top with the most subscribers in the Japanese streaming market.
Owing to the country's large population and the economic affluency of consumers, the Japanese music market is one of the largest of its kind.
The boycott against Spotify started with Canadian legends Neil Young and Joni Mitchell, followed by Crosby, Stills and Nash and musician and podcaster India Arie. They're troubled by the service's star podcaster, Joe Rogan, who they say has spread misinformation about COVID-19 on his show, The Joe Rogan Experience.