SoundCloud has spent the past year in the news a lot with news about starting subscriptions, their Copyright rules, and a leaks scandal. The latest concern to come out is that the music platform fiscally not doing well. Only a few weeks after Spotify ending talks of purchasing the platform, it has come to light that there is a loss of about $54million dollars in 2015, and as 2017 starts is at a risk of running out of cash.
In a report filed at Companies House, Alexander Ljung said that even with the licensing deals that have been getting signed with both publishing and label companies and the launching of SoundCloud Go, the company is not bringing in the money that they expected or need. The report shows that 21.8% more revenue was made in 2015 over 2014 but the total losses were at %54.3million, 31% up from 2014.
According to the report, a lot of SoundCloud’s future relies on the fiscal support of SoundCloud Go. This is putting a lot on the reliance that users of SoundCloud will subscribe to hear the exclusive tracks that artists post. it is believed that SoundCloud can sustain themselves through December, 2017 but have concerns about 2018 and onward, as of right now.
Below is a statement that a representative from SoundCloud emailed to the website THUMP:
“SoundCloud filed its 2015 accounts with Companies House in December, and they are now publicly available on their site as of today. The accounts show that, in 2015, we were heavily focused on putting the necessary measures in place to build out our monetization model, including our consumer subscription service, SoundCloud Go, and roll-out of advertising on the platform. This meant investing in technology, people and marketing, as well as securing complex licensing agreements with key music industry partners. As such, the company remained unprofitable.”
THUMP also stated they said,
“In 2016, we saw solid growth not only for the industry but for SoundCloud too. And we see this trend continuing throughout 2017. To date, we have successfully launched SoundCloud Go, our subscription service, and our ads business in eight markets, including the US, UK, Ireland, France, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Germany. We are on a very positive path to achieving our aim of enabling all creators to be paid for their work, while also building a financially sustainable platform where our connected community of creators, listeners and curators can continue to thrive.”