Tidal CEO replaced as company "streamlines resources"

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Tidal has confirmed it has a new CEO and has made a number of redundancies, as Jay-Z's new ownership team makes changes at the streaming music service.

Tidal has confirmed that Andy Chen, who was CEO of Tidal parent company Aspiro before the Jay-Z takeover, has left the company.

He has been replaced by its former CEO, Peter Tonstad, who will act as interim Tidal CEO. The company also confirmed a number of further redundancies.

A statement announcing the changes said that new CEO, Peter Tonstad, was "streamlining resources to ensure talent is maximized to enhance the customer experience.

"We've eliminated a handful of positions and refocused our company-wide talent to address departments that need support and cut redundancies. Tidal’s offices globally will remain and grow: we are already hiring for several new positions now.

"We're excited about our future and what's in store for fans who want the best listening experience."

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Tidal relaunched in the US and worldwide with a star-studded press event that revealed a number of celebrity investors, from Jack White to Madonna. The event was greeted with a mixed response, with many criticising the focus on big-name artists.

Tidal aims to differentiate itself with editorial content, curated playlists and exclusive music and videos, plus of course lossless, CD-quality streams for £20/month premium users.

Competing with the likes of Qobuz and Deezer Elite on Sonos in the lossless market, the launch of Tidal's £10/month standard service shows it clearly wants a piece of the mainstream, too, with runaway market-leader Spotify firmly in its sights.

MORE: Best music streaming services 2015

[via Breakit / Business Insider]

Joe Cox
Joe Cox
Content Director

Joe is the Content Director for What Hi-Fi? and Future’s Product Testing, having previously been the Global Editor-in-Chief of What Hi-Fi?. He has worked on What Hi-Fi? across the print magazine and website for almost 20 years, writing news, reviews and features on everything from turntables to TVs, headphones to hi-fi separates. He has covered product launch events across the world, from Apple to Technics, Sony and Samsung; reported from CES, the Bristol Show, and Munich High End for many years; and written for sites such as the BBC, Stuff, and the Guardian. In his spare time, he enjoys expanding his vinyl collection and cycling (not at the same time).