Shazam, the maker of a song-recognition app is bought by Apple.Financial details of the acquisition weren’t disclosed by Apple, but the purchase price is reportedly around $400 million. Techcrunch was first to report about the acquisition Friday. Shazam was at one point valued $1 billion, and has raised more than $143 million from investors.
The Shazam, British company got its start in 2002 by offering a phone service that helped people identify music. Users dialed 2580, held their cellphones to a source of music, and Shazam responded with a text message containing the name of the artist and the title of the song.
In 2008, the company rolled this feature into an ad-supported app and launched it on the newly created Apple App Store. It started making money from music referrals too. It became and remains one of the most-downloaded apps.
“We have exciting plans in store, and we look forward to combining with Shazam,” Apple said. The Cupertino, California, company declined to say whether Shazam’s app will still be available after the deal closes.
The Shazam acquisition is one of Apple's most notable since the electronics giant purchased Beats Music in 2014 for $3 billion, which laid the groundwork for Apple Music.
Digital services have been playing an increasingly important role for Apple as the sales of iPhones the company’s main moneymaker have slowed. Software and other services generated $30 billion in revenue during Apple’s last fiscal year, a 23 percent increase from the previous year.
The Shazam, British company got its start in 2002 by offering a phone service that helped people identify music. Users dialed 2580, held their cellphones to a source of music, and Shazam responded with a text message containing the name of the artist and the title of the song.
In 2008, the company rolled this feature into an ad-supported app and launched it on the newly created Apple App Store. It started making money from music referrals too. It became and remains one of the most-downloaded apps.
“We have exciting plans in store, and we look forward to combining with Shazam,” Apple said. The Cupertino, California, company declined to say whether Shazam’s app will still be available after the deal closes.
The Shazam acquisition is one of Apple's most notable since the electronics giant purchased Beats Music in 2014 for $3 billion, which laid the groundwork for Apple Music.
Digital services have been playing an increasingly important role for Apple as the sales of iPhones the company’s main moneymaker have slowed. Software and other services generated $30 billion in revenue during Apple’s last fiscal year, a 23 percent increase from the previous year.
