Amazon.com Inc. is shutting down Amp, the live-audio app that allowed users to act like radio DJs by playing music and talking alongside the songs.
The product launched in March 2022 following a frenzy around live-audio services during the pandemic.
“This decision was not made quickly or easily,” Steve Boom, who leads the digital music unit at Amazon, said in a memo reviewed by Bloomberg. “It only became clear after months of careful consideration determining the investments Amazon wants to make for the future.”
The app was introduced with a roster of talent from the hip-hop world, including Nicki Minaj, Big Boi and Pusha T, as well as podcasters like Guy Raz of How I Built This. In the memo, Boom said the company had learned more about how live-music communities interact and would use that to help build new fan experiences on Amazon Music.
The move to close the service follows a flurry of cutbacks at the online retailer. Multiple projects have been axed, including Amazon Halo wellness devices, an autonomous delivery robot called Amazon Scout and free grocery delivery. Under Chief Executive Officer Andy Jassy’s leadership, the company has fired 27,000 people and kept most corporate hiring frozen for more than a year.
The mood in the broader audio industry has been similarly down. Podcast businesses have laid off staff and cut back on shows while companies that launched live-audio efforts, like Spotify Technology SA, shut down their efforts. Clubhouse, the pioneer of the format, recently adjusted its business to focus on conversations with friends.
--With assistance from Matt Day.
(Adds broader cuttbacks at Amazon in fifth paragraph.)
