Yahoo snaps up MusicMatch
15 September 2004
Internet giant Yahoo has announced that it has reached an agreement with Musicmatch Inc under which Yahoo will acquire the online jukebox provider for $160 million (£89 million).
MusicMatch has a catalogue of 700,000 songs available in 10 languages and around 225,000 subscribers.
Users of the service can opt to download songs individually or pay a monthly subscription fee for unlimited listening. Musicmatch Jukebox software allows consumers to play, burn, download, discover, and organise an entire music collection and the online Musicmatch Radio network offers free and premium streaming access to more than 900,000 songs and more than 200 pre-programmed stations.
The acquisition will enable Yahoo to increase its music reach from 12.9 million to an estimated 23 million listeners.
"Yahoo is committed to being a major player in digital music," said Terry Semel, Yahoo Inc chairman and chief executive officer. "This combination bolsters our strategy to capture the largest audience of consumers as they make the shift to digital music and supports Yahoo's goal to give consumers the greatest choice, control and flexibility in how they interact with their music. This acquisition is one of several product innovations and new initiatives in which Yahoo will invest to build our music portfolio this year and in the future."
The deal will see Yahoo take on Apple and Napster for a share of the digital music market.
Digital music sales are forecast to continue increasing rapidly, particularly with the increasing take-up of broadband access.
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