Soundcloud have been in the wars of late with heavy takedown activity and most majors giving it a pass outside of Warner who came to an agreement late last year but there may be light at the end of the tunnel.

Sources have told Music Business Worldwide that another major label has come to an agreement with the innovative streaming platform with Universal giving Soundcloud the green light on a potential licensing/revenue share.

In March this year Soundcloud announced that ‘On Soundcloud’, a way for labels to generate revenue from streams was paying out roughly $166K a month to label owners.

Couple that with the acquisition of ex-Facebook Ireland MD Sonia Flynn and the platform could be showing signs of strength but the realities is Universal have strong armed their way through negotiations as told by an insider.

“Universal had a couple of aggressive choices: they could either sue SoundCloud, which wasn’t off the table, or refuse to play ball with them and watch them slide out of existence as money ran low.

“But Universal knows that a world with a SoundCloud that it can control is better than a world without SoundCloud full stop – especially if that leads to a hundred clones popping up online.

“Initially, UMG’s demands were completely unacceptable to SoundCloud, but the balance of power – of who needs who to prosper – appears to have shifted since those days.”

As it stands Universal look to take equity in the company and take advantage of Soundclouds forthcoming subscription service.

What do you think of the tactics involved and current position of Soundcloud?