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Project Panther Bidco Ltd, a company controlled by the
45-year-old rapper, said on Friday it had agreed to buy
Sweden-listed Aspiro for 464 million Swedish crowns ($56
million) in cash.
Shares in Aspiro, which runs music streaming service WiMP, leapt
59 percent in early trading to the bid level of 1.05 crowns per
share.
Jay-Z, real name Shawn Corey Carter, is one of the world's
best-selling music artists of all time, having sold more than
100 million records. Forbes estimated last year that his net
worth was $520 million.
Married to pop star Beyonce, Jay-Z has had a number of business
interests, including 40/40 Club sports bars and Rocawear
clothing.
His mix of music and entrepreneurial interests mirrors that of
other rappers, including De Dre, who sold his Beats headphones
business to Apple, and 50 Cent, who sold his vitamin water
business to Coca-Cola.
Project Panther said it had followed the development of Aspiro
for some time, believing it to be "an innovative high-quality
company with strong future growth potential".
Norwegian media house Schibsted, Aspiro's main shareholder, said
it had accepted the offer, while Aspiro's board said it was
united in recommending the bid, virtually ensuring its success.
Schibsted owns around 75 percent of Streaming Media AS, which in
turn owns about 76 percent of Aspiro.
($1 = 8.2680 Swedish crowns)
(Reporting by Johannes Hellstrom; Editing by Mark Potter)
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