Rhapsody / Napster Restructures, Laying Off Staff, Closing San Francisco Office

[UPDATED] Rhapsody and Napster are reportedly closing their San Francisco office and laying off staff in a broad restructuring effort, as the company fights to find profitability in the increasingly competitive streaming music sector.

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Rhapsody is closing its long time San Francisco office and laying off staff, according to source with knowledge of the situation. The company's corporate offices are in Seattle, but it also has maintained teams in San Francisco, New York, São Paulo and Frankfurt.

The move comes despite  reported 35% paid subscriber growth last year. 

While not confirming the San Francisco closure, the company did confirm a broad restructuring that will include layoffs in an email statement to Hypebot from Rhapsody/Napster CEO Mike Davis:

As part of our plan to better position Rhapsody/Napster for long-term profitability and accelerated growth in a competitive global market, we have a new, streamlined structure for the company that unfortunately impacts a number of positions across our global offices. We will handle the process with the deepest respect and gratitude for all affected individuals.  

The difficult actions we are taking now will create operational efficiency and position Rhapsody/Napster for growth while further expanding our global partnerships, which last year contributed to a 35 percent increase in paid subscribers. We're proud of the product innovations we've introduced that connect music fans with each other to discover new music they love, and look forward to continuing to create experiences and partnerships that increase the amount of music people emotionally connect and listen to around the world.