Music streaming company, Spotify Technology SA, said Wednesday that third quarter revenue grew by 19% in the number of new subscribers looking for its premium service. This was driven by demand in Europe and North America, thus beating Wall Street projections.

Premium subscribers, which account for most of the company's revenue, reached 172 million, beating analysts' expectations of 171.7 million.

Total monthly active users increased 19% to 381 million.

Advertising revenues, which reduced at the height of the pandemic, rose by 75% to €323 million, and the company is planning to hire hundreds of new employees to increase advertising sales.

On the other hand, the company has been investing heavily in its podcaster business to compete with Apple's. Therefore, it launched a paid subscription platform for podcasters in the United States and opened it up to advertising.

""We are seeing a lot of demand for podcasting, which is bringing in more advertisers," said Chief Executive Daniel Ek. The CEO did not reveal figures, but said that growth was triple-digit over the same period last year.

Total revenues increased 271TP2Q to €2.50 billion in the third quarter, beating the €2.45 billion forecast by analysts, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

About 40% of Spotify's premium subscribers are based in Europe and 29% in the United States.

The company reported a net profit of two million euros, compared to a loss of 101 million euros a year earlier.