As part of a new licensing deal with several entertainment companies, SoundCloud will begin incorporating advertising and for the first time in its six year history allow artists and record labels to collect royalties.
The Berlin based company also revealed plans to introduce a paid subscription service that will let listeners skip the adverts, as they do with Spotify and other similar licensed platforms.
According to a report in the New York Times, the first advertisers will include Red Bull, Jaguar and Comedy Central, whose adverts will run in conjunction with licensed content.
Among the initial content partners are publishers Sony/ATV and BMG, digital distributor INgrooves and a small selection of independent artists.
For its new subscription programme, dubbed Premier, SoundCloud will sign licensing agreements with music companies which will allow it to run advertising on its service.
Most of the revenue from the adverts will go to content providers, Jeff Toig, SoundCloud’s chief business officer, told the New York Times.
However, there are millions of musical works currently on SoundCloud, including DJ mixes, mash-ups, covers and other user generated content, which make licensing negotiations with music companies and content providers complex.
In 2013, the service said it had more than 40 million registered users and 200 million listeners worldwide.
The Berlin based company also revealed plans to introduce a paid subscription service that will let listeners skip the adverts, as they do with Spotify and other similar licensed platforms.
According to a report in the New York Times, the first advertisers will include Red Bull, Jaguar and Comedy Central, whose adverts will run in conjunction with licensed content.
Among the initial content partners are publishers Sony/ATV and BMG, digital distributor INgrooves and a small selection of independent artists.
For its new subscription programme, dubbed Premier, SoundCloud will sign licensing agreements with music companies which will allow it to run advertising on its service.
Most of the revenue from the adverts will go to content providers, Jeff Toig, SoundCloud’s chief business officer, told the New York Times.
However, there are millions of musical works currently on SoundCloud, including DJ mixes, mash-ups, covers and other user generated content, which make licensing negotiations with music companies and content providers complex.
In 2013, the service said it had more than 40 million registered users and 200 million listeners worldwide.
