|
 Square Chief Executive Jack
Dorsey, who also runs Twitter Inc, said in a
statement that the tie-up "comes down to one
simple idea: finding new ways for artists to
support their work."
Square and Tidal would work on new listening
experiences "to bring fans closer together,"
simple integrations for merchandise sales and
financial tools for artists, he added in a
Twitter post.
Such new offerings could take advantage of
emerging technologies such as blockchain and
cryptocurrencies that Dorsey views highly, said
Avivah Litan, a technology analyst at consulting
company Gartner.
"You need the applications to drive the new
economy," Litan said. "No one's going to just go
get a cryptocurrency wallet if there's nothing
to buy."
Among the obscure blockchain systems that Square
and Tidal could help popularize are digital
files known as non-fungible tokens (NFT) that
serve as digital signatures to certify who owns
photos, videos and other online media.
The provenance of autographs and memorabilia
could be tracked by associated NFT, Litan said,
potentially making them even more valuable and
significant to artists' fans.
Dorsey has supported so-called decentralization
technologies such as blockchain because they
enable people to store data and process
transactions without relying on big tech
companies and other service providers that
profit off being a gatekeeper.
While companies still could develop related
businesses, consumers would have more control
over what they view and own online, Dorsey said
at a conference last year.
[to top of second column]
|
 Martha Bennett, an analyst at
the consulting firm Forrester, said companies
and artists already trying to sell music
directly to fans through blockchain-based
systems have had limited success.
Tidal calls itself an artist-owned service
backed by Kanye West, Beyoncé, Madonna, Rihanna
and Nicki Minaj among others, and is available
in more than 56 countries. It has sought to
distinguish itself from Spotify and other rivals
by committing to providing higher sound quality
to listeners and a greater share of revenue to
artists. But it has lagged in subscribers.
"When you think purely about breaking into the
market, if somebody with the brand name of Jay-Z
and Beyonce don't manage to break the
stranglehold of the well-established streaming
platforms then who else can," Bennett said.
Square did not disclose the percentage of its
ownership via the cash and stock deal. Tidal
will operate independently and existing artist
shareholders will maintain ownership, Square
said.
It added that Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn
Carter, would join its board.
Jay-Z bought Tidal for roughly $56 million in
2015 from Norwegian entrepreneurs.
(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru;
Editing by Ramakrishnan M., Bernard Orr and
Richard Pullin)
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