Best Buy to Acquire Napster
published Mon, 15 Sep 2008 – 16:54:55 -0700 PDTNo Comment
MINNEAPOLIS AND LOS ANGELES — Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) and Napster Inc. (NASDAQ:NAPS) announced today that the two companies have entered into a definitive merger agreement for Best Buy to commence a tender offer for all outstanding Napster shares at a price of $2.65 per share in cash. Best Buy intends to use Napster’s capabilities and digital subscriber base to reach new customers with an enhanced experience for exploring and selecting music and other digital entertainment products over an increasing array of devices. Best Buy believes the combined capabilities of the two companies will allow it to build stronger relationships with customers, expand the number of subscribers, and capture recurring revenue by offering ongoing value over a mobile digital platform.
“This transaction offers Best Buy a recognized platform for enhancing our capabilities in the digital media space and building new, recurring relationships with customers,” said Brian Dunn, President and COO of Best Buy. “Over time we hope to strengthen our offerings to consumers, who we believe will increasingly seek devices and solutions that enable them to access their content wherever, whenever and however they want.”
About Best Buy
With operations in the United States, Canada, Europe and China, Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) is a multinational retailer of technology and entertainment products and services with a commitment to growth and innovation. The Best Buy family of brands and partnerships collectively generates more than $40 billion annual revenue and includes brands such as Best Buy, Audiovisions, The Carphone Warehouse, Future Shop, Geek Squad, Jiangsu Five Star, Magnolia Audio Video, Pacific Sales Kitchen and Bath Centers, and Speakeasy. Approximately 150,000 employees apply their talents to help bring the benefits of these brands to life for customers through retail locations, multiple call centers and web sites, in-home solutions, product delivery and in our communities. Community partnership is central to the way we do business at Best Buy. In fiscal 2008, we donated a combined $31.8 million to improve the vitality of the communities where our employees and customers live and work. For more information about Best Buy, visit www.bestbuy.com.
About Napster
Napster, the pioneer of digital music, offers the ultimate in interactive music experiences, creating better ways to discover, share, acquire and enjoy music — anytime, anywhere. The Company’s offerings include “Napster” (www.napster.com) — the premier online music destination featuring the most popular on-demand music subscription service in the world and the largest, most comprehensive MP3 download store on the market; “FreeNapster” (www.freeNapster.com) — a unique Web experience offering free on demand music legally; and “Napster Mobile” — one of the industry’s fastest growing mobile music platforms. Headquartered in Los Angeles, Napster’s services are available in markets across the Americas, Europe and Japan.
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About The Author / Editor:
JJ Jame is a percussionist and theremin player, formerly a member of the Redondo Beach based BoyRacer.com™ electronica band, and a long-time electronic music fan, formerly an editor for the defunct EMcult™ website.
     
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