Hey DJ: Mixcloud Wants Your SoundCloud Mixes

It’s been rough going for SoundCloud. Attempting the difficult pivot from a “freemium” model to a pure play streaming site, the embattled company (I think we can apply that word now!) has felt the sting after antagonizing a large part of their userbase. A partnership with content scanner Zefr resulted in a massive number of uploads being taken down – including some kid’s college homework – and the troubling suggestion that creators might find themselves subject to the most restrictive copyright laws in the world. Would-be corporate partners have not only remained cool to SoundCloud’s pitch to license their catalog, but yesterday Sony Music even pulled their tracks from the service.

Now Mixcloud has stepped up to take a whack. Probably the largest alternative for DJs looking to upload their mixes legally, Mixcloud is setting up a welcome sign for SoundCloud refugees by offering a free import tool. Simply log into your Mixcloud account, hit this link (currently in Beta) to link your SoundCloud account and Mixcloud will handle the details.

Yes, I am user679706062. Finally my secret can be revealed.

It’s not seamless and there’s still the problem of a lack of easy file download options, but if you’ve been suckerpunched by the ZefrBot, it at least takes care of the most time consuming part of the process of moving your mixes off SoundCloud. Repopulating your followers is a bit more of a challenge. (I wrote a brief overview of SoundCloud alternatives for DJs here.)