Apple is reportedly close to acquiring Shazam, a popular app that lets you identify songs, TV shows, movies, and more.
Sources tell TechCrunch that the deal is being signed this week and will be announced on Monday, although that could change.
One source describes the deal as in the nine figures; another puts it at around £300 million ($401 million). We are still asking around. Notably, though, the numbers we’ve heard are lower than the $1.02 billion (according to PitchBook) post-money valuation the company had in its last funding round, in 2015.
Shazam has raised $143.5 million from various investors including Kleiner Perkins, London's DN Capital, IVP, Sony Music, Universal Music, and Access Industries. The app surpassed one billion downloads in September of 2016; however, it's not yet profitable. Shazam posted a pre-tax loss of $5.3 million in 2016 and a $22.28 million loss in 2015.
Apple would likely use Shazam to drive traffic to its music streaming service and iTunes Store. Shazam is already integrated with Siri; however, there's lots more Apple could do with it.
We'll let you know if an official acquisition announcement is made. Please follow iClarified on Twitter, Facebook, or RSS for updates.
[via TechCrunch] [Download]
Sources tell TechCrunch that the deal is being signed this week and will be announced on Monday, although that could change.
One source describes the deal as in the nine figures; another puts it at around £300 million ($401 million). We are still asking around. Notably, though, the numbers we’ve heard are lower than the $1.02 billion (according to PitchBook) post-money valuation the company had in its last funding round, in 2015.
Shazam has raised $143.5 million from various investors including Kleiner Perkins, London's DN Capital, IVP, Sony Music, Universal Music, and Access Industries. The app surpassed one billion downloads in September of 2016; however, it's not yet profitable. Shazam posted a pre-tax loss of $5.3 million in 2016 and a $22.28 million loss in 2015.
Apple would likely use Shazam to drive traffic to its music streaming service and iTunes Store. Shazam is already integrated with Siri; however, there's lots more Apple could do with it.
We'll let you know if an official acquisition announcement is made. Please follow iClarified on Twitter, Facebook, or RSS for updates.
[via TechCrunch] [Download]