Tesco sells blinkbox Music to Guvera
Tesco has completed its predicted sale of Blinkbox Music to rival platform Guvera as it continues to shed assets in an effort to bolster its balance sheet.
Tesco’s music streaming platform now counts 2.5 million registered users requesting 100 million streams a month, making it an attractive prospect for Guvera as it seeks to expand in Western Europe and access its technical, product, marketing and content expertise.
Boasting licensing deals with the likes of Universal Music Group, Warner and Sony, Guvera operates both a free ad-funded and subscription service. It is also the worldwide music partner of Lenovo.
Michael de Vere, Guvera’s global chief operating officer, said: “The acquisition of blinkbox Music is an important new chapter in the Guvera story, adding significant firepower to our product – both in terms of technical expertise and an established and loyal audience in the UK.”
Phil Quartararo, chief content officer and president of Guvera USA, added: “Looking broadly at where great technology is coming from, London is firmly the place to be. It certainly feels like it’s becoming the Silicon Valley for music streaming.”
A Blinkbox spokesperson declined to comment on the financial terms of the deal, but said it was acquired debt free.