Alibaba Intends to Shut Down its Music App in the Process of Scaling Down Businesses

In 2013, Alibaba had acquired the music streaming app Xiami with an aim to venture into China's entertainment industry. However, last month, as Chinese regulatory bodies threatened to restrict their businesses over alleged monopolistic practices, the company started planning to scale down businesses.

"Due to operational adjustments, we will stop the service of Xiami Music from February 5," Alibaba's music arm announced on Tuesday on its Weibo account. Alibaba acquired the online music app in 2013 and invested millions to compete in China's online music business.

Its efforts however have not paid off and the app currently only has two percent of China's music streaming market, behind KuGou Music, QQ Music, KuWo, and NetEase Cloud Music, according to Beijing-headquartered data intelligence company TalkingData.

Earlier in December, a Bloomberg report states, Jack Ma’s Ant Group is planning to fold its financial operations into a holding company that could be regulated more like a bank. The fintech giant is planning to move any unit that would require a financial license into the holding company, pending regulatory approval. The move came after Chinese regulators threatened to throttle the company's businesses over alleged monopolistic practices.

Furthermore, the report also states"The move might cripple the growth of the fintech giant's most profitable units"

People's bank, the country's central bank, late last month, summoned Ant executives and asked them to rectify its business module by complying with the country's regulatory requirement. It also asked the company to continue as a provider of payments services, the way it had started out, threatening to throttle growth in its consumer loans and wealth management businesses.

In a statement released by the central bank, it said Ant Group lacked a sound governance mechanism, defied regulatory compliance requirements, and engaged in regulatory arbitrage. The company used its market position to exclude rivals and hurt the rights and interests of consumers.

Regulators ordered Ant Group to establish a financial holding company and hold sufficient capital. They also said that Ant Group should return to its payments origins, enhance transparency around transactions, and prohibit unfair competition.