Mixcloud signs licensing deal with Warner Music

One of SoundCloud‘s rivals in the lucrative music streaming business, Mixcloud, has signed a licensing deal with Warner Music. The main outcome of the remarkable deal allows the streaming platform to start a subscription business, now offering music of Warner artists. At the same time, the deal will offer listeners a more on-demand service. Mixcloud is also still negotiating similar licensing deals with the two other major players in the world of popular music, Sony Music and Universal Music.

The deal with Warner Music is a huge boost for UK-based Mixcloud and a giant step forward in the company’s bid to take a bigger piece of the music streaming industry. Warner Music is the first major record company to sign a licensing deal with the service, that attracts around 17 million listeners every month. Users have access to a stunning number of almost 12 million radio shows, podcasts and DJ sets by names like Tiësto, Moby, Richie Hawtin and Carl Cox, who have all uploaded sets and other music content to Mixcloud.

The licensing deal with Warner Music is part of the streaming platform’s strategy to launch its new subscription offer, enabling music fans to subscribe to ‘individual creator channels’, offering a more innovative listening experience. The details of the subscription product are still being worked out, but Mixcloud’s co-founder Nico Perez stressed in a Financial Times interview that they don’t want to replicate Spotify‘s $ 9.99 a month model:

“That’s done. That market is served. What we’re building is going to be very customized.” 

Until recently, the service’s scope was rather limited, partly due to official licensing laws. This caused Mixcloud having to rely on statutory radio licenses for its music usage, meaning that offering online downloads was previously not allowed. Therefore it goes without saying that the new Warner Music deal is an absolute milestone for Mixcloud in particular.