I didn’t use the word “bought”. Acquired 
.
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I didn’t know this. Thanks for sharing Pete. I wonder if they bought stakes specifically so they could see/analyze the technology…
Bought? That would require the three largest competitive record companies to independently think of buying into the same technology at precisely the same time.
Question
Although I have an active subscription with TIDAL I have not used it for years. I recall reading that with the demise of MQA Tidal has embarked on a program to revert all of their files back to standard CD resolution. Am I correct - and if so at what point are they with the catalogue?
That is not what I inderstand. It is too early to know in detail as no result is yet known as to the outcome of the period of administration. Tidal have said that the existing repertoire of MQA files may continue but will no longer be added to. A FLAC service will be introduced for Hi-Fl Plus customers (i.e. hi-res). When or if this will happen is not known.
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Thanks for the reply Pete.
I should probably get around to canceling - I kept my subscription active as Tidal’s catalogue was considerably larger than that of Qobuz - back in the day. I think this no longer may be the case.
Probably correct Gregg. When I looked last about a couple of years back, Qobuz USA was adding 10K albums a month. Of course building a streaming library is an endless task for all. One good thing is that Qobuz offer a free trial period which you can take advantage of to see if it suits you.
I always remind people to download the Qobuz desktop player to their general purpose computer as well as using the Mosaic feature. The desktop is where you can change your streaming resolution choice, clear the cache etc. It is also where to access the curated extras with Qobuz like features on music types, artists or labels and is a good place to assemble playlists etc.
Hi Pete
Just to clarify - I have been a Qobuz subscriber since the companies inception - and actually many years before they officially entered the US market (they allowed US IP Addresses to sign up and just list France as their location ) . It is the only streaming service which I use with my Naim/Rossini. I remained a Tidal subscriber - I simply never got around to canceling my subscription after all these years.
Additionally - I have been a ROON subscriber for many years however like many here I primarily use Mosaic. Each year I question whether or not to renew my ROON subscription. Unfortunately, like my Tidal sub…it keeps on getting renewed and rolling on.
Best
Gregg
Thanks Gregg. Sorry, I thoght you may be a Qobuz newbie.
I don’t know if you retain the Qobuz France subscription but as you raised the subject of repertoire for readers in general I would mention hat the national divisions of Qobuz mean that the same catalogue is not available to every subscriber. Each country has a music database that takes account of regional interests. Hence the French service ( and the new Canadian one) have francophone titles that won’t be found elsewhere. Given your remark about Qobuz v. Tidal then some specialist USA labels will not be found on the French database. I know, for example, that Qobuz US were trying to add several US local rock labels (presumably with some success).
I keep an eye on Roon and what they are doing but the need for additional gear to run Roon Core and my lack of space for it plus what strikes me as additional complexity keeps me away.
Best Wishes
Pete
Pete
Once Qobuz officially launched in the US it was requested that US domicile subscribers change over their subscription. I dutifully complied.
If you want to try ROON no additional gear is needed. While many use dedicated ROON 'appliances" there are many others (myself included) who simply run ROON on a computer. ROON has been running on my kitchen iMAC for countless years and has been working flawlessly. You should give it a try (they have a trial subscription) and have a play with it.
Best
Gregg
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Interestingly, I just noticed that the MQA Administrators filed an update in early June. Its quite a read.
A couple of the more interesting tidbits;
MQA Audio is available on a growing number of streaming services, including Tidal, Amazon Music HD, and Qobuz.
(Seems to be a stretching of the true situation w.r.t streaming availability of MQA tracks 
)
Major record labels Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group have been hit with infringement lawsuits over four patents related to ‘encoding and distributing digital content’.
Blue Spike apparently claims that the companies violated its intellectual property “when performing the MQA encoding process”.
Also, there’s a whole section around some of the parties interested in MQA Ltd. Apparently 7 parties signed NDA to assess MQA Ltd., who then received 2 “verbal commitments” from Corporate entities, but the Administrators also state “To date, no offers that are capable of being accepted have been received by the Administrators."
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Thanks for posting this @Anupc. Another interesting find:
Exhibit E lays out the finances of MQA. Since getting involved a few months ago, the administrators have racked up 625,000 £ in fees, identical to estimated company book value (the sum of “Realization costs”). In other words, after administrative fees, there is now 0 £ available to creditors.
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That just seems plain wrong, doesn’t it. It would appear that the administration and related fees have exhausted/will exhaust those lovely looking cash-at-bank figures and a company which may have been worth say a minimum of £500k actual cash in bank + say £50k for those tangible assets is worth £1 with a fair wind now the administrators have “helped”.
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Yes, but par for the course with bankruptcy administrators… (!)
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Yeah. Does make the maths easier…
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This chart is the one that boggles my mind:
Why would investors continue investing in a company with expenses ~10x the revenue (turnover)? Not a good recipe!
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Exactly. While many technology companies need a couple years to reach profitability, it is the incredibly low revenue–barely 2 million pounds, cumulative, over 5 years–that is surprising.
From the article (thank you @Ermos):
“Tidal had previously announced in April that it would begin offering high-res audio tracks in the open-source FLAC codec as well as the proprietary MQA format, but today marks the first time Tidal bluntly expressed a preference for FLAC when it comes to high-resolution audio.”
I think this is the end of the prospects for restructuring, given that MQA is losing the support of its top distribution partner.
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“90% of startups fail within the first 5 years in the business.”
And we salute the 90% for trying! Where would we be if we were stuck with the same companies we had 50 years ago?
Rhetorical question, asking for a friend! 
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