China's Tencent Music revenue beats estimates on strong user growth (updated)

Netease Cloud Music

16/05/2023 10:10

(Adds share movement in first paragraph, paying user numbers in
the 4th paragraph; net profit numbers in the last paragraph)
       May 16 (Reuters) - China's Tencent Music Entertainment
Group  1698.HK   TME.N  on Tuesday reported higher revenue after
five straight quarterly declines, driven by growth in paying
users on its Spotify-like music streaming platform, sending its
U.S.-listed shares up nearly 3% in premarket trading.   
    The company, which is China's answer to Spotify  SPOT.N ,
has been ramping up its original content slate to help put more
users behind a paywall, as it competes with the likes of
NetEase's  NTES.O  Cloud Music and Bytedance-owned short video
sharing platform Douyin.
    Paying users at its online music streaming service rose to
94.4 million in the quarter, up from 88.5 million in the prior
quarter.      
    Total revenue of the company, controlled by Chinese tech
giant Tencent Holdings Ltd  0700.HK , stood at 7.0 billion yuan 
($1.01 billion) in the quarter ended March 31, compared with
analysts' estimates of 6.86 billion yuan, according to Refinitiv
data.
    Net profit attributable to equity holders was 1.15 billion 
yuan, compared with 609 million yuan in the same period last
year.  

    
($1 = 6.9121 Chinese yuan renminbi)
  

 (Reporting by Samrhitha Arunasalam in Bengaluru; Editing by
Rashmi Aich)
 ((Samrhitha.A@thomsonreuters.com))