In its Q4 earnings released Tuesday, Spotify reported strong user growth but an operating loss driven by investments in hiring, podcasts, and audiobooks.  The streaming-audio service is the first to surpass 200 million paid subscribers. It now has nearly 500 million monthly active users. As of Dec. 31, Spotify's premium subscribers rose to 205 million, up by up 10 million from last quarter and a 14% jump year-on-year. Paid subscribers account for most of its revenue. Spotify's monthly active users rose 20% to 489 million. Both figures beat Wall Street expectations and its guidance from the previous quarter. However, Spotify's quarterly operating loss was around $250M. The company attributed the figure to "higher personnel costs primarily due to headcount growth and higher advertising costs," as well as currency fluctuations. Last week, Spotify announced that it is laying off 6% of its staff, affecting about 600 employees, as part of cost-cutting measures and a broader organizational restructuring.