From CNET: It looks like the musical mashup of Spotify and SoundCloud won't be happening after all.
The Financial Times reported in September that music-streaming service Spotify was in "advanced talks" to acquire rival streaming service SoundCloud. However, months of discussions between the two have apparently been fruitless, and Spotify has abandoned its takeover plans, TechCrunch reported Thursday, citing a source within Spotify.
Talks were called of because Spotify feared the acquisition could muddle its plans for going public next year, the unidentified source said. A sales price wasn't mentioned, but Bloomberg reported in July that SoundCloud's owners were considering a sale that could value the company at $1 billion.
The breakdown in negotiations comes amid intensifying competition for streaming-music customers. In the last three years, consumers have shifted from digital downloads to memberships that charge a monthly fee for unlimited access to tens of millions of songs.
Spotify currently dominates the market with 40 million paying subscribers worldwide, up from 30 million paying subscribers in March, according to market researcher Statista. Apple has been catching up fast, saying earlier this week that had surpassed the 20 million subscriber milestone just 18 months after its launch.
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