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Spotify’s market value hovers at around $29 billion

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

The Spotify app on an iPad, as seen on March 20 in Baltimore. Spotify stock debuted on the market with a boom, opening at $165.90 in an unusual “direct listing.”

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek arrived, in Feb. 2012, at the Pre-Grammy Gala & Salute to Industry Icons with Clive Davis honoring Richard Branson, in Beverly Hills, Calif. Spotify stock debuted on the market with a boom, opening at $165.90 in an unusual “direct listing.”

SAN FRANCISCO >> The Latest on Spotify’s Wall Street debut (all times local):

11:15 a.m.

Spotify is hovering around $29 billion in market value on its first day of trading as the streaming music service hopes to gain ground in a growing industry.

The company’s key competitor, Pandora, is worth about $1.2 billion, based on trading today.

Spotify has been compared to streaming entertainment service Netflix for its growth potential. Netflix is worth about $122 billion.

9:50

Spotify debuts on the market with a boom, opening at $165.90 in an unusual “direct listing.”

The shares quickly wobbled in their first hour of trading, though remain well above the NYSE’s reference price of $132.

8:20 a.m.

The market is still awaiting Spotify’s highly anticipated public debut as the streaming music service goes through with its unusual “direct listing”.

The NYSE had set a reference price of $132 for the stock, though the actual price will be determined by shareholders. The Swedish company’s use of a “direct listing” allows its early investors and employees to sell as many shares as they want whenever they want.

The company has traded between $48.93 and $132 over the last 12 months through private transactions, and indications today showed it could trade as high as $155.

The company, with more than 71 million subscribers, is not raising any money through the IPO.

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