UPDATE | Alex Ljung released a statement on behalf of Soundcloud following the proliferation of information from TechCrunch’s initial article. Read below.
There are a number of inaccuracies within the TechCrunch article. They seem to stem from a misinterpretation of information by one or two laid off employees during a recent all hands meeting.
Due to the extensive number of inaccuracies, we will only comment regarding funding and layoffs. To clarify, SoundCloud is fully funded into the fourth quarter. [emphasis our own] We continue to be confident the changes made last week put us on our path to profitability and ensure SoundCloud’s long-term viability. In terms of layoffs, it is our policy not to discuss individual employee cases, but we can share we continue to work with all employees who were let go to support them during this transition, with employment and financial assistance. 
Read here for one staff member’s opinion on the future of Soundcloud, and why the 50-day statistic being cited is bogus.
SoundCloud recently did some major cleaning house, closing offices in San Francisco and London, and slashing 40% of its workers.
The move, according to SoundCloud, was to ensure “long-term” success, but some say the fate of the music streaming service isn’t so optimistic. In a detailed report, TechCrunch dives into the reality of what’s really going on with the company.
Sources at SoundCloud revealed to TechCrunch that founders Alex Ljung and Eric Wahlforrs straight up confessed the mass amount of layoffs only buys them time “until Q4” — so, “long-term” suddenly becomes “50 days.” SoundCloud PR also confirmed the same timeline, but also mentioned the company is looking into investors.
When TechCrunch asked about the morale of the team, an anonymous employee of SoundCloud said, “It’s pretty shitty. Pretty somber. I know people who didn’t get the axe are actually quitting. The people saved from this are jumping ship. The morale is really low.”
Another from a different office described the situation as “a shitshow.”
Yikes. Another scary factor: the death of SoundCloud could mean the world’s biggest collection of independent music will completely vanish off the internet forever.
Source: TechCrunch
