‘Is it little late?’ This question may have popped up in Spotify’s senior management team as it plans to enter the Indian music streaming market. Irrespective of the timing, the entry of Swedish based music streaming giant is likely to have a disruptive impact on India’s music streaming industry.
Spotify is one of the most popular music apps in America and Europe and as of today it is currently present in 78 markets. The Swedish company recently added 13 countries in the Middle East and North African region to fuel its global ambition. India now seems to be the next destination for the company.
Although Spotify hasn’t yet officially announced that it is planning for a grand Indian debut, media is buzzing with the report that the company is in final stage of negotiations with several Indian music companies. And if everything goes well then Spotify will most likely make a debut in India in next 6 months.
Meanwhile, media is buzzing with several interesting news with regards to Spotify’s entry into the Indian market. Below we’ve lined up some of the juicy news about Spotify’s anticipated debut in India.
- The Swedish company has already reported to have hired nearly 300 employees in India including former Olx India CEO Amarjit Singh Batra. Batra, by the way, has so far not commented on this unconfirmed news.
- India’s most popular music company T Series is close to signing a deal with Spotify. T Series boss Bhushan Kumar (who was recently in news for #Me Too allegation) has himself confirmed the news to a leading daily publication.
- Other leading music labels that are holding talks with Spotify are Times Music, Zee Music and Eros International.
- This is not the first attempt by the global music streaming giant to infiltrate the India market. Many months back, it had tried to enter the Indian market through acquisition. However, the attempt ended in failure as the acquisition talks collapsed. Sources also claim that company failed to strike a deal with Indian music companies during its first attempt.
Spotify will have to Brace for Intense Competition
Spotify certainly won’t have a walkover in the Indian market as it will have to brace for some tough competition. Times Group owned Gaana will pose a big competition for the global streaming giant. Gaana boasts nearly 75 Mn users across India and had received $115-Million in fresh funding from Tencent earlier this year.
Apart from Gaana, Saavn, Hungama and global services like Apple Music, Google Play and Amazon are likely to give a tough time to Spotify.
However, given that Spotify is a company that has successfully cracked the competition in tough markets like U.S and Europe, it should feel pretty confident about its prospect in the Indian market.