New financial records released by SoundCloud show that the company has nearly doubled its losses from 2013 to 2014—those two years combined account for a total of €62.1 million ($70.3 million) in losses.
The Berlin-based audio social network has been the darling of independent producers and DJs worldwide who use it to share and comment on each other’s work. But like some startups, it has struggled to turn its massive user base into meaningful revenue. As a "freemium" service, most people use the site without paying.
With mounting losses, the company’s board of directors wrote that there are "material uncertainties facing the business."
As Billboard reported, "SoundCloud was widely reported to have 175 million users globally around the end of 2014. But its average revenue per user, or ARPU, was just 11.2 cents."
By comparison, its closest rivals, Pandora and Spotify, have ARPUs of $11 and $27, respectively.
Just last month, SoundCloud confirmed that it took on $32 million in debt financing in 2015. But the company has been trying to put a positive spin on some dire financial news, citing recent licensing deals with record labels.
"Over the past year, we’ve continued to bring partners from the music industry onto SoundCloud," spokeswoman Brielle Villablanca wrote in a statement sent to Ars.
"We’ve signed deals with PRS and UMG/UMPG, to add to the nearly 200 deals we’ve already signed, including those with Warner Music, Merlin, and NMPA, as well as MCNs and independent creators," she said. "We’re focussing on enabling creators to get paid for their creativity and on building a financially sustainable platform that our community can enjoy for years to come."
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