Controversial music streaming service Grooveshark is offline after 10 years of operation. A message posted by the website's administrators says Grooveshark regrets the way it operated, which caused damage to major record labels, and recommends that registered users of the site use other legitimate services such as Spotify or Beats Music.
The company's statement appears to be "guided" by the record companies, which was the reason for the suspension of Grooveshark.
The statement states:
[su_box title=”Statement” box_color=”#048805″ radius=”1″]Dear music lovers,
Today Grooveshark is closing.
We started almost ten years ago with the goal of helping music lovers share and discover music. But despite our best intentions, we made some very serious mistakes. We failed to secure permission from rights holders for the vast amounts of music on the service.
This was a mistake. We apologize. Without reservation.
As part of the settlement agreement with the major record labels, we have agreed to cease operating the service immediately, delete all data from our servers, and surrender ownership of this website, our mobile applications, patents, and copyrights.
If you love music and respect the artists, songwriters, and everyone who helps create the music, use a licensed service.
You can learn more about the many great services available where you live here: https://whymusicmatters.com/find-music. It has been a privilege to meet so many of you and enjoy music with you. Thank you for being such passionate fans.
Your friends on Grooveshark[/su_box]
Last week, a judge imposed a maximum fine of $150,000 for each song found to be infringing copyright. The lawsuit involved around 5,000 songs, meaning Grooveshark could be owed hundreds of millions of dollars in damages.
After so much pressure, the company's closure should come as no surprise..
