Apple has announced that it is buying Beats Electronics for $3 billion. They are paying $2.6 billion in cash and $400 billion in equity.
Beats Electronics co-founders Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine will join the Apple team. Dr. Dre is a rapper-turned-entrepreneur, and was even said to have one of the top 50 greatest hip-hop songs of all time, according to Rolling Stone magazine. Iovine is best known for co-finding Interscope Records, which has worked alongside artists like the Black Eyed Peas, Lady Gaga, and Madonna.
In a letter written to his employees Apple CEO Tim Cook writes:
“Music is an important part of our lives and our culture. Music has the power to inspire us, to comfort us, and to send our emotions soaring. It brings people together and transcends the limits of spoken language.”
He continues by saying that “Apple’s history in music began with selling Macs to musicians. That remains important to us today, but we also bring music to hundreds of millions of customers with iTunes, which is at the forefront of the digital music revolution. Music holds a special place in our hearts at Apple, and we know that we can make an even bigger contribution to something that is so important to our society. That’s why we have kept investing in music and why we’re bringing together these extraordinary teams — so we can continue to create the most innovative music products and services in the world.”
With the creation of websites like Pandora and Spotify, it is no surprise that Apple wishes to step it up. The creation of Itunes Radio, which has been successful since its release last September, seems to be only the start of Apple’s goal to once again get to the top.
The merging of Apple and Beats Electronics is the first big thing Apple has done since the passing of Steve Jobs. This might just help Apple revolutionize music once again.