Apple Music Now Has Over 30 Million Subscribers but Jimmy Iovine Thinks It Isn't Offering Enough

Back in February this year, Eddy Cue revealed that Apple Music's subscriber count was "well past" 20 million but in a recent interview with Billboard, the company has now revealed that the number has now touched the 30-million mark. However, the more interesting part of the interview was that Jimmy Iovine, who currently heads the service, admitted that the service isn't offering enough just yet and has "a long way to go."

One might think that the impressive subscriber count would please Iovine but in his interview, he made it clear that music streaming is not where it ideally should be. "I just don't think streaming is enough as it is. I don't agree that all things are going to be OK [just] because Apple came into streaming and the numbers went up," Iovine said in his interview.

Iovine said that there needs to be "much more" engagement between the artists and the audience. "We have big plans and a long way to go. It's just impossible to do it all in two years," he said. The company also takes the competition from free services like YouTube seriously but says that its music streaming service needs to be more than just about music, despite having it as the central element.

Zane Lowe, creative director for Apple Music's free radio service Beats 1, was also part of the interview and said, "We need to put context and stories around music. The song itself is obviously the primary passion point - it's a key that opens the door. But what's inside the room that is going to make a fan a super fan? Music has become quicker, faster, and there's more of it. That doesn't mean you shouldn't create a story around something that is beautiful and that lives and breathes."

Notably, Spotify claimed last month that it has accrued more than 60 million subscribers. While Spotify has been around for a much longer time than Apple Music, there is no denying that the lead is substantial as of now.