Spotify pushes further into Asia with imminent launches in Vietnam and Thailand

With rumours swirling that Spotify is planning to go public, news has broken that the streaming service is making a new push into Asia, with Vietnam and Thailand the first markets to be targeted.

As TechCrunch reports, two sources have told the publication that Spotify is planning to launch in both countries – a total population of 160 million – with an expansion into the massive Indian market being examined for 2018.

While Spotify declined to comment, it is currently hiring for a ‘music editor’ position for both Vietnam and Thailand, jobs that will be based at the Asia Pacific headquarters in Singapore. As TechCrunch points out, the hiring of a music editor for Indonesia in 2015 was followed by a launch in the country six months later.

A move into India, however, would be the real prize here, with even a small percentage of its 1.3bn population bound to do wonders for its currently questionable profitability ahead of the proposed IPO in 2018.

However, the smaller markets are proving to be less competitive, with India having already seen the launches of Apple Music in 2015 and Gooogle Play this year, alongside several local services.

This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.