Adaptability essential for independent car subscription operators

Whether Spotify or Netflix, these household names have shown not only that subscription models can work for consumers, but also that the model can turn small companies into market leaders. While today both are huge players in audio and video streaming, in the early part of the millennium they were struggling to mix it with industry incumbents: “As soon as I saw it, I knew what was happening: John Antioco [Blockbuster’s then Chief Executive] was struggling not to laugh,” Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph recalls of his attempt to sell Netflix to the video rental giant for US$50m in September 2000. Could the automotive industry yet follow the same path?