By ‘Dayo Showemimo
American rapper and business mogul, Jay Z, is in the process of acquiring Aspiro, (the Swedish parent company of two subscription streaming services, WiMP and TIDAL) believed to be the main rival of Spotify.
The rapper’s offer of 464 million Swedish krona ($56.2m), was announced by Aspiro early today and reports say it has already been accepted. With the news of a takeover by Jay Z filtering in this morning, trading of Aspiro’s stock went up by about 76 percent.
The proposed acquisition is being made via the mogul’s Project Panther Bidco, a subsidiary of his S. Carter Enterprises, and is still subject to shareholder approval although observers foresee a successful deal in the end.
An official statement from Jay Z’s camp reads: ‘Project Panther Bidco, Ltd (“Panther”), an entity controlled by S. Carter Enterprises, LLC (“SCE”) is pursuing a possible acquisition of Aspiro AB (“Aspiro”), based in Sweden. Aspiro is a media technology company in the forefront of the ongoing redefinition of music consumption. Through the subscription services WiMP and TIDAL, Aspiro offers a complete experience of higher HiFi quality. The platform encompasses audio, video and integrated editorial features.
Panther believes that the recent developments in the entertainment industry, with the migration to media streaming, offers great potential for increased entertainment consumption and an opportunity for artists to further promote their music. Panther’s strategic ambition revolves around global expansion and up-scaling of Aspiro’s platform, technology and services. The acquisition is subject to shareholder approval. As such there is no guaranty that a transaction will take place.’
