Music Industry

Last.Fm Becomes Streaming Music Service Casualty

Alan Cross 1 Comment 2 min read

The streaming music arena has become very crowded over the last couple of years which means it was only a matter of time before Darwin’s laws inevitably came into play.  Early this month, Turntable.fm announced it was going away.  Now Last.fm, one of the first streaming companies I ever heard about, is closing down its subscription service.  It will cease to be April 28.

This will be most annoying to Canadians who used the service.  Unlike its bigger brethren–Spotify, Pandora, Beats–Last.fm was accessible to Canadians. (Hey, kids! Come on over to Songza where I work!)

Here’s their statement:

Hi everyone,Today we have announced significant changes to Last.fm subscriptions. From the 28th of April 2014, our subscription radio streaming service will no longer be available. This means that traditional subscriber radio will no longer work on any platform or device.Over ten years, our goal has always been to allow people around the world to discover new music with as few limitations or restrictions as possible. However, the music landscape has changed considerably during that time and we’ve been forced to make some very difficult decisions surrounding our core products and services. In response we’ve chosen to focus on what we think Last.fm does best: scrobbling, music discovery, and recommendations.If you have an iOS device you can download the Scrobbler app and build Last.fm powered playlists from the music in your device’s library. Also, if you have speakers or a stereo that supports Bluetooth you can link your iOS device and fill the room with music. You’ll still be able to listen to all of your favourite stations on the new Last.fm Player, as well as listen to your favourite tracks with our recently launched on-demand playback feature via Spotify.

Hardware devices that currently scrobble, such as Sonos and Logitech Squeezebox, will continue to scrobble as long as the manufacturers support it. We continue to work on new ways to bring scrobbling to every corner of the music universe to make Last.fm your music home.

Last.fm subscribers are some of the most dedicated music fans out there and we are deeply grateful for your support over the years. We understand that many of you will not like this decision. If you would like to cancel your Last.fm subscription please follow the steps here or you can request a refund here.

Thank you again for your support.

Sincerely,
The Last.fm Team

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 39508 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

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One thought on “Last.Fm Becomes Streaming Music Service Casualty”

  • Phew, glad the scrobbling service is still intact. Love it and been using it since 2006.

    Reply

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