Spotify is finally going public

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Spotify
The Spotify IPO is finally here.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Apple Music’s biggest competition is about to get an influx of Wall Street cash.

Spotify finally filed documents for an initial public offering, after rumors of going public had been floating around for years. According to reports, the company could be worth as much as much as $23 billion, but it’s still not profitable.

CNBC reports that in 2017, Spotify posted a loss of $1.5 billion. One billion of that was a non-recurring expense from a transaction with Tencent. Operating losses were pegged at $461.3 billion in 2017. In 2016, Spotify lost $425.9 million.

Despite its loses, Spotify is the world’s most popular paid streaming service. It boasts 71 million paid subscribers as of December 2017. Apple Music is its closest competitor with over 30 million subscribers.

“We set out to reimagine the music industry and to provide a better way for both artists and consumers to benefit from the digital transformation of the music industry,” the company said in its filing. “Spotify was founded on the belief that music is universal and that streaming is a more robust and seamless access model that benefits both artists and music fans.”

Spotify shares have traded as high as $132.50 in private markets. There’s no set price by underwriters for the IPO, so shares could be much cheaper than that when it’s available on . Spotify will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “SPOT”.

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