SoundCloud acquires decentralized music platform Nina Protocol after shutdown
10 reported2 unconfirmed
SoundCloud announced Wednesday that it has acquired Nina Protocol, a decentralized music platform that allowed independent artists to sell music directly to fans while keeping all revenue. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, and it is unclear whether any Nina team members will join SoundCloud. The acquisition is SoundCloud’s first since its 2022 purchase of AI music company Musiio. As part of the deal, SoundCloud will take ownership of Nina’s editorial archive and “genre map,” which the company says will help preserve music journalism and surface emerging artists. The acquisition comes months after Nina announced it would shut down on May 28, citing an inability to establish a sustainable business model. Nina Protocol was founded in 2021 by independent musicians Jack Callahan, Mike Pollard, and Eric Farber, and was built on the Solana blockchain with Arweave for storage. SoundCloud is offering Nina artists a migration tool and a complimentary Artist subscription through the end of the year.
What’s reported
SoundCloud announced the acquisition of Nina Protocol on Wednesday.
Nina Protocol enabled independent artists to sell music directly to fans while keeping 100% of revenue.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
It is unclear whether any Nina team members will join SoundCloud.
This is SoundCloud’s first acquisition since its 2022 purchase of AI music company Musiio.
SoundCloud will take ownership of Nina’s editorial archive and “genre map.”
Nina announced it would shut down on May 28 due to an inability to establish a sustainable business model.
Nina Protocol was founded in 2021 by Jack Callahan, Mike Pollard, and Eric Farber.
The platform was built on the Solana blockchain and used Arweave for storage.
SoundCloud is offering Nina artists a migration tool and a complimentary Artist subscription through the end of the year.
Open questions
The financial terms of the acquisition.
Whether any Nina team members will join SoundCloud.
Key figures
Eliah Seton, SoundCloud CEO
Jack Callahan, co-founder of Nina Protocol
Mike Pollard, co-founder of Nina Protocol
Eric Farber, co-founder of Nina Protocol
Sources: TechCrunch
