Extension Entertainment
Social music discovery platform that allows users to find and share music.
| Date | Investors | Amount | Round |
|---|---|---|---|
| investor investor investor investor | €0.0 | round | |
| investor investor investor investor | €0.0 | round | |
| investor | €0.0 | round | |
N/A | Acquisition | ||
| Total Funding | 000k | ||
Extension Entertainment, operating as ex.fm, was a New York-based music discovery platform founded in 2010 by Dan Kantor, Marshall Jones, and Charles Smith. The venture originated as a Google Chrome extension called 'Extension.fm', designed to identify and aggregate MP3 files from any webpage a user visited. This functionality allowed users to build a personal, cloud-based music library from the songs they encountered while browsing, positioning the service as a tool for discovering new and alternative music, particularly from music blogs.
The platform evolved to include a destination website, mobile applications for iOS and Android, and a site-side music player for blogs. Its core business was providing a free music discovery service to consumers, with a focus on creating a social and community-based experience around music found across the internet. The business model did not rely on subscription fees; instead, it aimed to build a large, engaged user base. Over its lifespan, ex.fm raised approximately $2.75 million in funding over three rounds from investors including Spark Capital, Betaworks, and Founder Collective.
The service faced significant operational challenges, including the high cost of processing millions of new songs monthly and increasing competition from established subscription services like Spotify and Pandora. Furthermore, the company encountered legal pressures from the music industry, receiving takedown notices and legal correspondence as its user base grew. These financial, technical, and legal hurdles led to the company's decision to shut down its services. The iOS and mobile apps ceased operations on January 15, 2014, with the full shutdown of the website, extensions, and API following on May 19, 2014. In August 2014, the team was acqui-hired by Rhapsody International, the parent company of Napster at the time, with co-founder Dan Cantor becoming their VP of Product.
Keywords: ex.fm, Extension Entertainment, music discovery, social music, browser extension, music streaming, cloud music library, Dan Kantor, Marshall Jones, Charles Smith, Rhapsody acquisition, music startup, online music player, blog music, alternative music, Spark Capital, Betaworks, Founder Collective, music aggregation, MP3 finder