APPLE Music has reached more than 20 million paid subscribers, less than two years after launching in the UK, the technology giant has said.
The milestone has moved the music streaming service into second place in the market behind rival Spotify, which launched in 2008 and has 40 million paying subscribers.
However, Spotify has more than 100 million monthly active users in total thanks to the free, advert-supported version of the service – something Apple Music does not offer.
Apple announced the user numbers as it revealed its ‘Best of 2016’ highlights for the streaming service and iTunes, its music, video and app store.
The official app for Spotify was named as the top grossing iPhone app in the UK this year, with WhatsApp Messenger the most downloaded free app.
The figures for music downloads and streams revealed a successful year for Drake, whose album Views was named the most popular in the UK ahead of Adele’s 25, and single One Dance was the top selling and streamed song of the year.
Matt Damon thriller The Martian was the best selling movie on iTunes, with Game Of Thrones season six the top TV show.
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