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Earbits came back online in June 2014 after announcing it would cease operations because of a funding shortfall. The company said a new strategic partnership supplied resources for a relaunch on the web and iOS. The backer was not named in the company announcement or contemporaneous trade coverage, so the “Angel” in the original headline is not a verified identity.
Who brought Earbits back online?
Earbits’ June 21, 2014 announcement credited a new strategic partner with helping the service return, but did not identify that partner. Contemporary coverage by RAIN News likewise described the backer as unnamed and reported that the service had been dark for five days. Earbits CEO Joey Flores said the partnership provided “the resources and capabilities needed to fulfill our shared vision for the future of global digital media.” The announcement does not establish whether that partner was an individual angel investor, a company, or the entity that later acquired Earbits.
Earbits’ own June 2014 release is the primary account of the relaunch. It reported more than 650 labels, 13,500 artists, and more than 380 channels at the time. These are company-reported historical figures, not independently audited or current audience and catalog totals.
What did Earbits do?
Earbits presented itself as a commercial-free streaming service focused on music discovery and promotion. Its business model also gave labels, bands, and concert promoters a way to pay for increased exposure in targeted channels through a program called Priority Airtime. The company framed that promotion as a way to help listeners find artists and to surface related products and live events.
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This combination matters to the story: Earbits was not simply announcing that a streaming player had been restored. Its relaunch depended on capital for a service whose pitch connected listeners’ music discovery with promotional opportunities for artists and industry partners.
How the shutdown and relaunch fit into Earbits’ history
June 2014: funding shortfall and return
Earbits said it had announced a cessation of operations after a funding shortfall, then secured new capital and planned a web and iOS relaunch. The company described the return as a strategic partnership, while RAIN News reported that the service had been offline for five days before the funding restored it.
Rank #2
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September 2015: You42 acquisition
More than a year later, Earbits announced that Atlanta-based You42, Inc. had acquired the company in full. In its September 24, 2015 announcement, Earbits described its focus as artist discovery and said it had gone offline briefly in June 2014. Co-founder Joey Flores later recalled that You42 was well funded and moved quickly to bring Earbits back online. That describes the 2015 acquisition; it does not identify the unnamed 2014 strategic partner.
The acquisition announcement reported more than 300,000 registered listeners and 13,000 artists across 600 labels. Separate boilerplate in the same release listed 14,500 artists across 700 record labels, more than 300,000 registered listeners, and 500,000 mobile installs, without dating those boilerplate totals separately. All are company-reported figures from the 2015 release, not current metrics or a precise snapshot of June 2014.
Rank #3
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Later descriptions in You42’s press archive
You42’s press archive later described Earbits Stations as genre-based listening with shuffled 100-track playlists, and Earbits Music as a network for curated music discovery and multimedia engagement. Those archive entries have no visible dates, and their descriptions do not establish whether Earbits is available today.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What is—and is not—known about Earbits today
The historical record establishes a 2014 return and a 2015 acquisition by You42. It does not establish the identity of the 2014 backer, whether that backer and You42 were connected, Earbits’ current ownership beyond the acquisition announcement, or whether its service, app, or catalog is currently available. The historical announcements should therefore be read as a record of the company’s past, not as confirmation of a live streaming service or current audience figures.
Quick Recap
Rank #4
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