The year of sheep seems to be favorable for music lovers as another music streaming service has been acquired by a foreign music streaming service giant. The Next Digit reports that Paris-based music streaming service Deezer bought Cricket Wireless owned streaming service Muve music on Thursday.
Web-based streaming service Deezer is said to have been very successful and known around the globe though not enough to compete with more recognized music streaming providers in the U.S. market, such Spotify and Rhapsody. U.S-based Cricket Wireless' music streaming service will definitely play a big role to Deezer's victory in such tight competition.
Acquiring Muve Music, an AT&T Inc. subsidiary, is an excellent move to expand Deezer's U.S. based followers as it had a huge triumph among Cricket subscribers and even reached two million paying users at the end of 2013 alone. No details were given about the acquisition but according to Gigaom, Deezer's North America CEO Tyler Goldman said in an interview with the publishing company that the acquisition is very important for the company. Deezer will retain Muve's artist marketing team and editorial team as a part of the deal.
Goldman said that Deezer aims to target low-income and Hispanic subscribers of Cricket, as more and more subscribers are looking for affordable or free-to-pay music streaming services. Deezer will offer a 15-day trial for Cricket subscribers and afterwards will charge $6 on a monthly basis. The subscription will be available for $35 plan said Goldman, Musically reported.