Hivemind and Algorand today announced the acquisition of Napster, to once again revolutionize the music industry by bringing blockchain and Web3 to artists and fans. The investor consortium also includes ATC Management, BH Digital, G20 Ventures and others. Music industry veteran Emmy Lovell has been named interim CEO. Stay tuned for further details. Follow us for the latest updates: Linkedin: https://lnkd.in/e-sMA3gy Twitter: https://lnkd.in/etPQD4AK Facebook: https://lnkd.in/eHrrZQNp Instagram: https://lnkd.in/eW6bE-JZ
I was an EVP at UMG when Napster 1.0 was unleashed and disrupted the music industry. I met with Shawn Fanning, Sean Parker, & Hank Barry to discuss licensing our music catalog. For many reasons that didn't happen but it did move the industry to innovate with the launch of pressplay, a JV between Sony Music and UMG that I ran until we sold it to Roxio. Roxio had acquired Napster's IP out of bankruptcy and, combined with the pressplay music subscription platform, the brand was relaunched as the Napster 2.0 service. As the president of Napster at Roxio, I met with Shawn Fanning once again who consulted with us on the relaunch. He remembered me from our meetings at UMG and said... "I remember you, you were the reasonable guy in the room!". The Napster Kitty has certainly had 9 lives and then some and I am excited to see what the next iteration will be. Napster 3.0 has the opportunity to bring the brand full circle with the web 3.0 decentralized model but with the ability to ensure that artists are fairly compensated this time around. Bravo!
Congrats to the whole Napster team, another exciting chapter and chance to change the future of the music industry yet again
It was an honor to be part of Napster’s rich history! I loved meeting and working with great people and executives; Ethan M. Rudin, Matthew Eccles, Brian Ringer, Ken Murphy, Randy Haas, Ruby White, and so many more! This deal looks like a tremendous partnership of various strengths, which should provide an excellent growth platform. Congrats to everyone involved!
Good to have the official news...
Have they acquired the whole Napster including what used to be MelodyVR? Are they planning on developing the VR part of the business? Napster used to have lot's of shareholders before delisting. Are they still in?
Thanks for sharing
That is a really interesting move in music commercialization.
LOL is the only possible comment...
Congratulations team Napster!
| CEO | Optio Capital
2yExcellent news Algorand Napster Group Hivemind