Now that SoundCloud has a licensing deal with another one of the major record labels, the completely free streaming site might be adding a subscription service.
SoundCloud is based in Berlin and already has 175 million users. TechCrunch reports that the company just reached a deal with Universal Music Group this week. SoundCloud had had a deal with Warner Bros. Music since November 2014 and a deal with Merlin, which represents thousands of indie labels, since June.
Still, SoundCloud is hoping to get a deal with Sony Music, the largest music publisher in the world. Sony already has a deal with Pandora, so it’s clear that Sony is willing to work with streaming services.
As part of its expansion, SoundCloud will eventually add paid subscriptions and advertising around the world. CEO and co-founder Alexander Ljung told TechCrunch that the subscription product will come “later this year,” but gave no details on what that might entail.
“We are going to launch subscription services later this year. No details to share on that yet other than I would think of it as an add-on rather than a change to the existing service,” Ljung said.
SoundCloud did begin adding commercials in the U.S. in May. Since then, it has shad that it paid $2 million in music royalties, reports The New York Times.
SoundCloud is hoping to grow in a field that’s dominated by Spotify, which has 20 million paid subscribers. Apple Music is catching up, with reportedly 10 million users in just six months.