---
title: 'Looking for music recommendations? Strands recommends you look somewhere else'
date: '2009-07-23T23:03:56-07:00'
type: post
word_count: 365
char_count: 2564
tokens: 475
categories:
  - Corvallis
  - moneyStrands
  - Music
  - MyStrands
  - Oregon
  - recommender
  - Strands
tags:
  - lifestreaming
  - Music
  - MyStrands
  - recommend
  - recommender
  - Strands
---

# Looking for music recommendations? Strands recommends you look somewhere else

When the economy gets tough, tough companies know they have to focus to survive. And unfortunately for my music recommendation dreams, Corvallis-based [Strands](http://strands.com "Strands") has decided to do just that.

It’s official. One of the businesses that [helped Strands get started](http://siliconflorist.com/2007/12/05/mystrands-lands-24-million-in-funding/ "Strands lands $24 million in funding")—MyStrands music—is no longer part of the offering. [Strands put the final nail in the MyStrands music service, today](http://strands.cmail1.com/T/ViewEmail/r/FC9AD34FC26F3546/7B432916D805C8569A8E73400EDACAB4 "Email from Strands about shuttering Strands Music").

> The bad news is that our MyStrands music service has been discontinued as of today 🙁

It’s sad to see—for me—but it probably makes the most sense for Strands.

When I first started [covering Strands—then called MyStrands](http://siliconflorist.com/2007/10/03/mystrands-partystrands-bringing-the-backchannel-to-the-forefront/)—I was really excited for by the potential of their recommender technology.

And I was [equally excited with the Strands lifestreaming product](http://siliconflorist.com/2008/05/29/strands-friendlier-than-friendfeed-or-everyones-lifestream-just-got-more-valuable/ "Strands friendlier than Friendfeed"), because I thought for sure that—with my friends providing data and ratings—I’d finally get to see some of that recommender magic that would help me find new music that exactly matched my tastes.

C’mon lifestreaming and recommender technology! Baby needs some new tunes.

But it wasn’t really meant to be.

The music stuff, while cool, never really took off. And the lifestreaming, despite Strands best efforts, never really developed a substantial following. But now, they’ve found another group with potential: [runners and cyclists](http://www.strands.com/ "Strands: Free training logs for runners, cyclists, and active people").

And they’re really picking up traction on other fronts. [Like moneyStrands](http://siliconflorist.com/2009/06/30/strands-personal-finanace-paying-dividends-ing/ "Strands personal finance paying dividends ING joins the roster").

So it’s good to see Strands getting more focused on what will help their business succeed. And that’s always a tough step for any entrepreneurial venture, foregoing the fun technology in favor of pursuing the business that will help the company survive.

Here’s hoping Strands not only survives, but thrives.

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