Spotify reported its first quarterly earnings since going public last month, and its stock quickly took a nosedive Wednesday in after-hours trading.
Shares of the music streaming service fell about 8 percent after investors were seemingly disappointed by the company's outlook.
Spotify met most expectations: 170 million monthly active users and 75 million paid subscribers. Revenue was right in line with expectations at around $1.34 billion.
However, guidance for the current quarter was uninspiring. Revenue growth looks flat-ish, projected to be between $1.3 billion to $1.6 billion. (Thomson Reuters estimated less than $1.6 billion.) And Spotify is still losing money ー more than $200 million last quarter, though that's less than the previous quarter.
Not everyone is disappointed in Spotify. Mike Vorhaus, the president of Magid Advisors, said he was impressed by the company's performance in a crowded, competitive market.
"When you are competing successfully with names like Apple and Amazon, and you continue to grow, that's a very very good sign," he said in an interview Wednesday with Cheddar.
Vorhaus said Spotify has great potential, and the company already has a critical mass of reliable customers and two strong business models.
"As advertising increases in the mobile world, that is going to be big for Spotify as well," he said.
Spotify (announced a mobile redesign) [https://mashable.com/2018/04/24/spotify-mobile-app-redesign-free-tier-on-demand-playlists/#wiPqtX_toqqb] last week that has users and tech fans buzzing. The new app is purportedly faster and will make it easier for non-paying users to access specific songs from playlists. There will also be a new "Data Saver" mode that will help users reduce their data usage by up to 75 percent when using 3G.
For the full segment, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/spotify-reports-for-the-first-time-and-tesla-reports-less-of-a-loss-than-expected).
From the TikTok boom to social commerce shopping to livestreaming events, social media trends took on all different shapes and sizes this year. Stephanie Humphrey, technology and lifestyle expert, joined Cheddar to discuss the biggest fads of the year, as well as what to expect for next year.
If 2021 is any indication, 2022 will be a big year for social media. TikTok reached 1 billion users this year and is expected to grow even bigger. We got our first look at the Metaverse, NFTs soared in popularity, and the crypto craze starting hitting its stride - just to name a few fads. Mark Douglas, CEO and Founder of MNTN, joined Cheddar to discuss if these trends could continue, or if we'll see some surprises in the year ahead.
2021 was a big year for big tech, but it was also a wake-up call for the government. Lawmakers are still struggling to figure out how to regulate big tech companies as they grow bigger and get even more powerful. Evan Greer, director of the digital rights organization Fight for the Future, joined Cheddar to discuss key takeaways from the year, as well as what we can expect for big tech and regulation in 2022.
Bumble users are remaining active on the dating app and still linking up with potential matches despite the emergence of the omicron variant of COVID-19. CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd noted that no matter what is happening in the world, people will always need to connect.
There seems to be no stopping the crypto craze, and this week has been no exception. Dogecoin surged after ‘Time Person of the Year' Elon Musk tweeted that Tesla will accept some payments in the digital token. Everett Millman, Crypto & Metals Analyst at Gainsville Coins, gives Cheddar insight into just how much influence Musk has over the crypto world.
As the world of crypto evolves, the need from investors for some type of stability within crypto is also growing. Enter stablecoins. Stablecoins serve as a crypto-equivalent which hold their value, and allow investors to quickly move their profits across currencies. Patrick McConlogue, CEO of Overline and former Citadel Investment Group engineer, explains what to expect ahead of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee’s stablecoin hearing, as regulatory tensions between the crypto market and the government continue to hover in limbo.
Carlo and Baker cover the latest data showing the Omicron wave has likely started, Pfizer's Covid pill, Jan. 6 and a box office rescue attempt courtesy of Spider-Man.