Update: Aaand it's over. If it ever began.
The Wall Street Journal reported that while the social network was in talks to buy SoundCloud, it has since backed out of them. A person familiar with the matter spilled the beans, noting Twitter decided to let the deadline for exclusivity pass before reaching an agreement.
Is this the end of the Twitter + SoundCloud talk? We're doubtful.
Original article below...
Twitter is reportedly considering a blockbuster bid for popular audio sharing service SoundCloud.
Recode sources "familiar with both companies" have claimed the social network is mulling a huge acquisition offer that would place the so-called 'YouTube of audio' under Twitter's control.
The report points out SoundCloud is valued at around $300 million (about £178m, AU$321m) and, like Twitter, has around 250 million active users.
Any buyout would be the microblog's largest acquisition by a considerable margin.
Fuelling growth
The main reason for the buyout would likely be to fuel Twitter's growth, which has started to slow somewhat in recent times.
The company had hoped to broaden its appeal with its ill-fated Twitter Music venture, which was finally put out of its misery last month.
However, a SoundCloud buy would represent a much different proposition. It's as established as Twitter in its field but retains huge potential for growth should it pursue distribution deals with major record labels.
SoundCloud users are also well acquainted with Twitter. They share files on Twitter more often than even Spotify users.
