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Jay Z is getting involved in the music streaming business. According to the Financial Times, the rap mogul is buying Swedish music streaming company Aspiro for $56 million.
The tech company currently runs two subscription streaming services, WiMP and TIDAL, which are available only in Sweden, Denmark, Poland, Germany and Norway. So far, it has 500,000-plus subscribers.
Project Panther Bidco, a subsidiary of S. Carter Enterprises, has secured the acquisition and is waiting for shareholder approval. A rep for the company said buying Aspiro was a move to help expand their portfolio in the technology business.
“Panther believes that the recent developments in the entertainment industry, with the migration to music and media streaming, offers great potential for increased entertainment consumption and an opportunity for artists to further promote their music,” read a statement.
Clearly, this deal will put Jay Z in competition with two of the biggest streaming services in the U.S.: Spotify and Dr. Dre’s Beats Music. So Jay will no doubt use his star power (and his Rolodex of celebrity and rap friends) to entice new followers and pull some customers away from the other streaming services.
The only downside is that no popular streaming company has yet to turn a profit. So it will be interesting to see how Hov will make money off his new acquisition.
We wish Jay Z the best of luck in his new venture.
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