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RIP Soundcloud

Kuffir

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Kuffir Newbie

Kuffir

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The streaming platform denies the report in TechCrunch, after laying off 40% of its staff last week.

SoundCloud only has enough money to keep running for another 50 days, according to a report from TechCrunch.

The report comes in the wake of massive layoffs at the music streaming company last week, when it terminated the contracts of 173 staff members across the world – 40% of its workforce.

According to SoundCloud sources close to TechCrunch, company founders Alex Ljung and Eric Wahlforss admitted that the layoffs have only saved the business enough money to last “until Q4”, which begins in 50 days.

When SoundCloud was reached for comment by TechCrunch, the response was a reiteration of Ljung’s official statement from last week. When presented with the leaked information, a representative insisted it was “fully funded into Q4”, but that it was also in talks with potential investors.

This conflicts with Ljung’s statement, which described SoundCloud’s future in more positive language. “By reducing our costs and continuing our revenue growth, we’re on our path to profitability and in control of SoundCloud’s independent future,” he said last week.

The report paints a sobering picture of life at SoundCloud after last week’s layoffs. An all-company meeting on July 11 was described as a “shitshow” by one source, who said:

“I don’t believe that people will stay. I don’t believe that people will stay. The good people at SoundCloud will leave. Eric [Wahlforss] said something about the SoundCloud ‘family,’ and there were laughs. You just fired 173 people of the family, how the fuck are you going to talk about family?”

According to sources at the meeting, the company admitted that it had known for months that it had to cut jobs, but didn’t inform any departments that they should be cutting costs.

The report even alleges that new staff were starting at the company as little as two weeks before the job losses, with some new hires quitting jobs, selling homes and abandoning rights to permanent residency to join the Berlin office.

When questioned by staff as to why there hadn’t been transparency regarding the company’s finances or a freeze in new hires, management reportedly said a hiring freeze would show weakness and cause people to ask questions.

One new hire, Vojta Stavik, told TechCrunch that he had been offered a role at SoundCloud that was due to start on July 17, but his was job cancelled on July 7 – just before he had been due to move to Berlin.

Stavik is now considering legal action against SoundCloud, because he says his signed job offer included four weeks notice of dismissal. The company, Stavik claims, is now refusing to pay his salary for that period.

SoundCloud’s money troubles have been well documented over the past few years. In 2016, it emerged that the company lost $44 million dollars in 2014, while this year, reports showed that it suffered a $52 million loss in 2015.

Various companies have been rumored as potential buyers of SoundCloud, including Twitter, Spotify, and, most recently, Google, but the service’s struggles to make deals with the majors may have held back any buyouts.

SoundCloud launched its subscription service SoundCloud Go last year, but that company has not yet chosen to release subscriber figures for the service.

FACT has contacted SoundCloud for comment.

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Kuffir Newbie

Kuffir

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12 minutes ago, PascalMoriarty said:

This is the worst news I've read in a while. Major Labels are going to make it so the consumer is forever at their mercy, if it isn't 360 deals its shutting down any platforms they aren't able to fully monetise.

the wide scale implications are pretty peak

on a personal level soundcloud is one of the first tabs i open, this is a good 90% of my music gone

end of an era

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Heero Yuy Newbie

Heero Yuy

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Lol never gonna happen, the internet is forever evolving.

 

/

sad news about SC, haven't used it as heavy recently but still check in here and again for new shit. Hopefully they pull through. Mad thing is if it goes something will take it's place just like it never happened, internet is ruthless.

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Zizouz Newbie

Zizouz

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7 minutes ago, Heero Yuy said:

Lol never gonna happen, the internet is forever evolving.

 

/

sad news about SC, haven't used it as heavy recently but still check in here and again for new shit. Hopefully they pull through. Mad thing is if it goes something will take it's place just like it never happened, internet is ruthless.

so real

I thought I'd never recover after megaupload went down

but the world(wide web) keeps spinning

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