Pandora's returning co-founder couldn't save the company on his own, steps down as CEO

Pandora's returning savior couldn't fix Pandora on his own.

Tim Westergren, who co-founded Pandora in 1999, left his position as CEO in 2004, and returned to run the company in 2016, is out again.

Westergren's departure comes after Pandora agreed to a $480 million investment from SiriusXM, which entitled the satellite radio service to choose three new members of Pandora's board of directors and a new board chairman. That deal didn't officially say that SiriusXM got a say in Pandora's CEO, but now that Westergren is gone, who knows.

Pandora, which for most of its lifetime offered free internet radio but has lately tried to make some headway in subscription music streaming, spent over a year looking for a buyer. Westergren served as CEO during Pandora's search for new cash and led the effort to revitalize its service as more than internet radio.

“I am incredibly proud of the company we have built. We invented a whole new way of enjoying and discovering music and in doing so, forever changed the listening experience for millions," Westergren said in a statement. "I came back to the CEO role last year to drive transformation across the business. We accomplished far more than we anticipated. We rebuilt Pandora’s relationships with the music industry; launched a fantastic Premium on-demand service, and brought a host of tech innovations to our advertising business. With these in place, plus a strengthened balance sheet, I believe Pandora is perfectly poised for its next chapter.”

CFO Naveen Chopra will serve as interim CEO, Pandora said in a news release.