South Korea's music streaming market shifts to YouTube Music and Spotify

Data from app analytics firms show that YouTube Music now leads South Korea's music‑streaming market with about 9.5 million monthly active users, while Spotify follows with roughly 6.2 million. Both global services have overtaken domestic platform Melon, which was once the market's near‑monopoly.

The rise is attributed to YouTube Music's integration with the broader YouTube ecosystem and Spotify's personalized recommendation tools, attracting younger listeners. Local operators introduced lower‑priced tiers such as YouTube Premium Lite, but industry figures say these moves have not stopped the migration to the international platforms. Regulators are monitoring the competitive dynamics as foreign services capture increasing user share.