Lack of cash could kill Jay-Z’s Tidal music service next year

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Jay Z
Jay Z's got 99 problems, and Apple Music is one.
Photo: Flickr/NRK P3

One of Apple’s biggest competitors in the music streaming business is about to bite the dust.

Tidal, the music streaming service owned by Jay-Z, is allegedly facing some serious money problems. According to a new report, user growth has stalled too making the company’s cash problems even worse.

Norway’s Dagens Næringsliv reports that Tidal only has about six months worth of working capital left. The report claims Tidal lost $44 million before taxes last year.

No Money, Mo’ Problems

Tidal has been plagued with problems practically since launch. The company supposedly had cash flow problems last year that prevented it from paying artists’ royalties on time. Keeping hold of top leadership has also been a problem for the company which went through three CEOs in two years.

In a statement to The Verge, Tidal didn’t exactly refute the reports that it’s struggling financially:

“We have experienced negative stories about Tidal since its inception and we have done nothing but grow the business each year.”

Sprint purchased a 33% stake in Tidal earlier this year. That investment allegedly gave the company 12-18 months of working capital. Tidal is hoping to become profitable by mid-2018. Spotify still isn’t profitable either though, so Tidal isn’t alone in its struggles.

Apple was rumored to be considering an acquisition of Tidal last year but nothing ever happened. It appears the iPhone-maker is content with watching Tidal slowly die instead.

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