4. SoundCloud still hasn’t launched its subscription service

SoundCloud makes some money from charging artists for unlimited hosting and access to listener stats, but it’s not enough. It’s why the company introduced advertising, and why it’s planning to introduce a subscription streaming service as part of its equity deals with Warner and Universal: if the company can carve out some of Spotify’s paid user base of 20m it has a shot at profitability.

Unfortunately for SoundCloud, the subscription service still hasn’t appeared, and we’re still none the wiser as to what form it’s going to take. A leaked document last year suggested two premium listening tiers, but the real question is what SoundCloud’s going to offer that Spotify and Apple Music don’t. The Netflix era has forced Spotify to get into the exclusive video content game, and SoundCloud will need to offer something beyond unofficial EDM remixes made in a teenager’s bedroom.