Ek Of A Year: Spotify To Reach 96m Subs?

Spotify is forecasting significant subscriber increases ahead of its IPO on April 3rd.

Spotify is predicting that it will reach up to 96 million subscribers in its fiscal 2018, an increase of 36% year-on-year. Total monthly active users for the year are forecast to reach between 198-208m. Spotify recently launched in new territories including South Africa and Vietnam, with launches in India and elsewhere planned for later in the year.

These huge territories will boost the numbers and are accompanied by growing revenues, with Spotify’s UK subsidiary making a £1.9m profit in comparison to £1.2m last year.

However, it also needs to be noted that Spotify continues to struggle to balance the books, with operating loss forecast to be €230-330m (£200.75m to £288m) in fiscal 2018, including an estimated €35-40m (£30.5m to £34.9m) cost for the direct listing.

It was also recently revealed that 2 million users aren’t paying for its ad free service, using modded apps and accounts to essentially pirate Spotify. This follows a scandal in which a Bulgarian playlister allegedly scammed the Spotify payout system for months, using entirely legitimate methods and making themselves a cool million in the process.

Its clear that as Spotify grows, subscriber numbers and profitability won’t be the only battle.

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