Last.fm

The music recommendation pioneer with 10M scrobbling users was acquired by CBS for $280M — then CBS never invested, Spotify built the same recommendations, and CBS sold it for a fraction of the price

Years-long decline before final shutdown · Fatal mistake: Last.fm pioneered music scrobbling (track listening behavior) and recommendations. CBS Interactive acquired for $280M in 2007. CBS never significantly invested in Last.fm post-acquisition. Spotify (Discover Weekly 2015) and Apple Music (personalized recommendations) replicated Last.fm's recommendations algorithmically. CBS sold Last.fm to Exfm for undisclosed amount 2014. The music recommendation category Last.fm invented was commoditized by streaming platforms 7 years later.