Pandora Monthly Users Fall 2.75M as SiriusXM Royalty Costs Rise

Pandora’s monthly active user base shrank by 2.75 million year over year (YoY) in the third quarter (Q3) of 2026, according to results published by its parent company, SiriusXM. Over the same period, the parent’s revenue share and royalty costs rose to $726 million.

Pandora listenership and paid subscribers decline#

Pandora had 38.81 million monthly active users (MAUs) at the end of September, down 6.6% from 41.56 million a year earlier. SiriusXM published the third-quarter results on Thursday, October 29.

The number of people paying for Pandora also fell. Self-pay subscribers across Pandora Plus and Pandora Premium totaled 5.51 million at the end of Q3, down 177,000 YoY. Ad-supported listener hours on Pandora dropped 10% YoY to 2.25 billion in the quarter.

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SiriusXM revenue and guidance#

Consolidated revenues across SiriusXM slipped from US dollars (USD) 2.159 billion in Q3 2025 to $2.153 billion. The company attributed the dip mainly to a 16% YoY fall in equipment revenue, which it linked to rising costs for the memory components used in its radio hardware.

Net income for the quarter rose 7% YoY to $317 million. Revenue share and royalty costs increased by $5 million YoY to $726 million, equal to 33.7% of total revenues in the quarter, up from 33.4% a year earlier.

• SiriusXM segment: covers the company’s satellite and streaming subscription service. Revenue share and royalty costs were $392 million, up 2% YoY.
• Pandora and Off-platform segment: covers Pandora, advertising SiriusXM sells on podcasts and other audio platforms, and its ad-tech business AdsWizz. Revenue share and royalty costs fell 1% YoY to $334 million.
• Segment revenues: $549 million in Q3, compared with $548 million a year earlier.
• Advertising revenue: grew 1% to $419 million, which SiriusXM credited to podcasting, programmatic sales and technology fees. The company said these gains were partly offset by lower music streaming ad sales on Pandora as listening hours declined.
• Subscriber revenue: fell 2% YoY to $130 million, which SiriusXM said was mainly the result of having fewer subscribers.

The SiriusXM service added approximately 5,000 self-pay subscribers in Q3, compared with a net loss of 40,000 in the prior-year quarter. It ended September with 32.85 million total subscribers, of which 31.26 million were self-pay. Average monthly revenue per user (ARPU) was $15.18, versus $15.19 in Q3 2025.

CEO Jennifer Witz said the Q3 results showed the company was “building a stronger, more durable SiriusXM.” She pointed to steadier subscriber numbers at the SiriusXM service, rising listener engagement, and additional advertising inventory from the company’s YouTube Audio partnership.

SiriusXM raised its full-year 2026 guidance for the second consecutive quarter, lifting its revenue, adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), and free cash flow forecasts by $25 million each. It now expects full-year revenues of approximately $8.55 billion. CFO Zac Coughlin said a more efficient operating model and declining satellite capital spending put the company in a position to step up share buybacks in 2027.

Royalty disputes with the MLC and BMI#

SiriusXM’s quarterly report (10-Q) filed on the same day includes updates on two disputes with music rights organizations. The first is a lawsuit filed against Pandora in February 2024 by the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC).

The MLC alleges that Pandora underpaid mechanical royalties on its free, ad-supported tier, which it argues qualifies as an interactive service. The filing says the MLC also argues that Pandora should pay additional mechanical royalties for its Pandora Plus tier. SiriusXM states in the filing that the MLC’s claims “would require Pandora to have paid and continue to pay significantly higher royalties.”

The court denied the parties’ cross-motions for summary judgment on September 30 and has yet to schedule a new trial date, according to SiriusXM. Judge Eli J. Richardson said in his order that it would be more efficient to resolve the contested issues at trial than to spend the court’s resources deciding the motions.

The MLC asked the court on October 14 to reconsider that order and grant it summary judgment or, failing that, to let both sides file new, shorter motions. As a further fallback, it asked the court to certify the order for an immediate appeal. In a response filed on Wednesday, October 28, Pandora opposed the MLC’s request for summary judgment outright. It did not oppose the court reconsidering the MLC’s motion, provided the court also revisits its rejection of Pandora’s own. Pandora did not object to a fresh round of shorter motions and took no position on an immediate appeal.

The second dispute involves BMI, a performing rights organization, which filed a rate court action against SiriusXM in September 2024. BMI asked the court to confirm that the license fees it had quoted to SiriusXM were reasonable, or otherwise to set reasonable rates. At the time, BMI President and CEO Mike O’Neill accused SiriusXM of “underpaying the creators of the music that drives the majority of their business.” The filing notes that SiriusXM currently operates under an interim license with BMI, and that the trial is set to begin on January 11, 2027.

Pandora raises subscription prices#

Pandora has also raised its subscription prices for subscribers billed directly by the service. The new prices took effect for new purchases on September 22 and apply to existing subscribers’ bills from October 22.

“We haven’t made this decision lightly,” Pandora said on its support website. The service last raised the price of Pandora Premium in May 2024, from $9.99 to $10.99 a month.

SiriusXM says in its 10-Q that it expects subscriber revenue in the Pandora and Off-platform segment to grow, with higher pricing offsetting a decline in the average number of subscribers.