New York
– The investment firm that owns digital music service eMusic is exploring a
possible sale of the company, and has spoken with potential suitors including
Best Buy and RealNetworks’ Rhapsody, The New York Post reported.
The company is
owned by Dimensional Associates, a unit of investment firm JDS Capital
Management.
"We’re opportunistic stewards of capital," eMusic CEO
Daniel Stein told the Post. "If an offer was made that created value for
our shareholders, we’d listen to it."
In addition to a sale, the company
is reportedly considering recapitalization, as well as adding a streaming
component to its core subscription-based download service offering.
A rash of
acquisitions has recently hit the streaming music service market, as News
Corp.’s MySpace acquired iLike and imeem, and Apple purchased Lala.
The Post
cited sources who said that eMusic is generating $65-$70 million in annual
revenues from some 400,000 subscribers, and is not in dire financial straits.
The company had long catered mainly to fans of independent music and genres
like classical and jazz, but recently signed a deal to include major label Sony
Music’s catalog.
The Post reports that eMusic is close to signing similar back
catalog deals with two of the remaining three major labels.
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(New York Post)
