Is the Soundcloud cap the final straw for its users?
Since announcing last summer that partnerships with major labels and even ads placements nearing, we could sense the end was near for arguably our favorite music streaming service of all time. Dean Hudson of SoundCloud has announced a new system, that’s being implemented for all material uploaded to their website.
Starting July 1st, the popular music website will have a 15,000 play request stream 24-hour stream limit for content on non-internal websites and third-party applications.. In layman’s terms, if a new Drake track drops and you’re not one of the first few thousand to hear it, you will have to wait an entire day before being able to have a chance at playing the material again, outside of the app. The company landed a licensing deal with Warner Bros. Records last holiday season, but Sony Music could go no longer without the streaming service having monetization – allowing their artist to have unlimited plays on a non-subscription based product.
Take a look at the press statement below.
At SoundCloud, we’re building an ecosystem where creativity thrives. Developers are an important part of that ecosystem. We’re continually inspired by how you use the SoundCloud API to support creators and listeners in innovative ways.But as the ecosystem has grown, we’re dealing with an increasing number of applications that abuse creator content. To help us limit this type of behaviour, we’re introducing a daily rate limit on API play requests.
Beginning July 1, client applications will be limited to 15,000 play requests per 24 hour period. Only a small number of developers will be affected by this change, and we’ll be contacting them via email to ensure a smooth transition.
With the obvious exception of YouTube, SoundCloud has been there premier destination for music listeners finding new material from up and coming artist, as well as major labels using the product to promote their artist. Unfortunately, with the pending July 1st launch of the new cap limit, we just can’t see the service remaining in the good graces of its loyal fan base – at least without a pay-per-month subscription, for the time being.
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