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LifestyleSpotify

Spotify is shutting down Heardle, the song-guessing game it bought last summer

By
Chris Morris
Chris Morris
Former Contributing Writer
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By
Chris Morris
Chris Morris
Former Contributing Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
April 14, 2023, 11:52 AM ET
Heardle will shut down on May 5.
Heardle will shut down on May 5. Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images

The music-themed guessing game Spotify bought last summer is going silent.

The streaming service plans to shut down Heardle on May 5, the company announced on the game’s Website. Players who would like to save their statistics in the game will have to save them before that time.

“Thanks for playing Heardle, but unfortunately we have to say goodbye,” the announcement reads. “From May 5th, Heardle will no longer be available. If you have stats that you would like to save, make sure you go to your stats and take a screenshot by May 4th. It won’t be possible to access them after May 4th.”

Heardle was a musical clone that came out as Wordle became a massive success. It found an audience and became a favorite of millions, eventually capturing the attention of Spotify, which bought it last July.

Spotify did not offer additional information about the decision, when asked for comment by Fortune.

While “Name That Tune” offshoots have been around for decades, Spotify originally said it saw greater potential for Heardle.

“We see Heardle as more than a trivia game: It’s also a tool for musical discovery,” it said when announcing the acquisition. “Playing Heardle might just help you to rediscover old tracks you may have thought you’d forgotten, discover amazing new artists, or finally put a title to that wordless melody you’ve had caught in your head forever.”

The company now says it will “focus our efforts on other features for music discovery.”

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About the Author
By Chris MorrisFormer Contributing Writer

Chris Morris is a former contributing writer at Fortune, covering everything from general business news to the video game and theme park industries.

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