Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

The City roundup video: Jay Z expands empire with Aspiro acquisition

Video: Alex Lawson provides a run-down of the day's major news from the City

Alex Lawson
Friday 30 January 2015 09:28 EST
Comments
Jay Z, here performing in LA on Monday, encouraged fans to follow their dreams in a tribute to Nelson Mandela
Jay Z, here performing in LA on Monday, encouraged fans to follow their dreams in a tribute to Nelson Mandela (Getty Images)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Don't miss out on the goings on in the business world, with our daily round-up of the biggest news from the City.

Arguably the globe’s biggest hip-hop star, Jay Z, expanded his business empire today with the acquisition of Aspiro.

The Swedish company owns music streaming site Wimp and the its purchase will cost Jay Z around £30 million.

Wimp currently has 500,000 subscribers, who have access to more than 25 million tracks.

Jay Z sets himself a significant challenge in taking on the might of Spotify which has fantastic global brand penetration, a strong line-up of artists and simple software.

What is most interesting is that Panther highlights the opportunity for artists to promote their music – perhaps this is the first sign of artists taking control of how their output is marketed and hitting back at Spotfiy, which has been criticised by the likes of Taylor Swifts for its poor returns to artists.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in