acesteele
16 years ago
Best Buy to buy Napster for $121 mln
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Consumer electronics retailer Best Buy Co. Inc (BBY.N) said on Monday it plans to buy digital music service Napster Inc (NAPS.O) for $121 million in cash.
Best Buy said it will pay $2.65 per share, nearly double the amount of Friday's closing price.
Included in the deal is approximately $67 million in cash and short term investments held by Napster, meaning the net price of the deal would be $54 million, the companies said.
The companies said the proposed acquisition includes Napster's approximately 700,000 subscribers, its Web-based customer service and mobile capabilities.
Napster Chief Executive Chris Gorog and key members of senior management have entered into employment agreements, effective at closing, to continue as the Napster leadership.
The transaction is expected to close during the fourth calendar quarter.
Best Buy expects Napster and its 140 employees to remain at its current Los Angeles headquarters.
Napster also said on Monday it would postpone its annual meeting in connection with the Best Buy agreement.
acesteele
16 years ago
Napster Debuts New Over-The-Air Video Service in Japan and Offers Unlimited Over-The-Air Music and Videos on New NTT DoCoMo Handsets
Napster, the pioneer of digital music, announced today that its unlimited over-the-air mobile subscription service in Japan will now include unlimited access to a high-quality digital video service to complement its music subscription service. The new video service, Napster Clips, puts high-quality music videos into the palms of purchasers of the new N906iL onefone model handset from Japan's leading mobile operator, NTT DoCoMo.
Napster Clips is a broadband video service that users can view from a full-size browser on the N906iL handset over either the NTT DoCoMo 3G/FOMA(TM)* mobile network or via NTT DoCoMo's new "Home U(TM)*" service -- a high-speed wireless LAN connection via home broadband network. Also, for the first 20,000 applicants of the N906iL onefone handset customers, NTT DoCoMo will include a free "Comes With Napster Music and Video" 6-month subscription to Napster's unlimited over the air Napster To Go audio and video music subscription service.
"We are proud to partner with NTT DoCoMo on the launch of our first-ever mobile music video service," said Napster President Brad Duea. "Providing Napster users with wireless mobile access to the world of music -- including videos -- over either a mobile network or WiFi network at home, is a significant milestone in our ongoing effort to expand and enhance our mobile offerings."
Napster To Go subscribers can view high-quality digital music videos of dozens of their favorite music artists from Japan and around the world through their new N906iL handset. In addition to viewing high-quality digital music videos and receiving full-length songs directly on their mobile handsets, when subscribers use the Napster To Go OTA service to download songs without connecting to a PC those tracks will be "bookmarked" and added to their PC collection. Further integrating the PC and OTA experience, users of the Napster To Go OTA service are able to view Playlists available on the PC and download them directly to their handsets over-the-air. Users of the N906iL series of DoCoMo phones will also still enjoy the option of side-loading content from the PC onto their phones, as with any other Napster To Go compatible portable music device.
NTT DoCoMo and Napster Japan will be rolling out a co-marketing campaign with the launch of the new video service, which will coincide with the handset launch.
acesteele
16 years ago
Napster launches MP3 formatted downloads:
"Yesterday Napster launched the world's largest MP3 store, substantially expanding our available marketplace as tracks purchased at Napster are now compatible with virtually any MP3 player or music phone in the world including the popular iPod and iPhone. We believe Napster's music offerings are now the most comprehensive and easy to use in the industry, providing music fans with the option to enjoy unlimited streaming, portable subscription, a broad array of mobile offerings and now the premiere MP3 store on the web."
Net revenue for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008 was $30.8 million, up 6 percent from $29.1 million in the prior year quarter
NICE! And a very smart move. Now every media player out there can purchase tracks from Napster, including iPod users, who were previously forced to use the iToonsMusicStore. Let the floodgates open!
QualityStocks
17 years ago
Napster's Unique Music Distribution Service Widely Appeals to Consumers
Napster’s music service allows customers to download an unlimited amount of music while staying within the guidelines set by the United States. For their subscription fee, users can explore thousands of songs and transfer them to their MP3 players.
The company’s business strategy has been recognized by top media publications such as PC Magazine, The New York Times, Cargo, Associated Press, and Hartford Courant. The New York Times stated, “When used to its fullest extent, Napster To Go lays iTunes flat”.
All the digital music files are encoded as high-quality 192Kbps WMAs in order to deliver the purest form of audio. The music service also offers radio stations, which can be customized based on the customer’s music library.
"Please see the disclaimers on the QualityStocks.net website."
mrktmaker
18 years ago
Today's NY post has +ve article on NAPS
by: johnnygodinho 06/19/06 07:30 am
Msg: 59489 of 59524
Napster insiders buying shares-NY Post
Last November, Napster (NAPS) CEO Chris Gorog bought 50,000 shares of his company's stock, and a company director bought 10,000. In the last six months, no executive or director has sold any shares of Napster's stock. Additionally, rumors that Google (GOOG) is considering an acquisition of Napster are resurfacing. Anthony Marchese, president of the Monarch Capital Group, says the stock could double in the event of a takeover
mrktmaker
18 years ago
Ericsson and Napster introduce Napster Mobile
Monday February 13, 4:44 am ET
Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERICY) the world's leading telecommunications supplier, and Napster (NASDAQ: NAPS), the biggest brand in digital music, announce that Napster Mobile is now available to mobile network operators in select markets across Europe, North America and Asia.
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN--(MARKET WIRE)--Feb 13, 2006 -- This new comprehensive and feature-rich service allows consumers to purchase artist images, ring tones and full-length songs via WAP as well as via an easy to use integrated software application on their mobile handsets. Napster Mobile was formally debuted to mobile operators today at 3GSM in Barcelona and is the result of a global partnership forged by the companies in June of last year.
The Napster Mobile service combines elements of Napster's popular PC offering and Ericsson's personalized music service, currently utilized by more mobile operators than any other in the world. The Napster Mobile application has a look and feel similar to Napster's award-winning PC software and includes Napster programming such as featured artists, top tracks of the day and new releases. User-friendly Napster Mobile also features a powerful recommendation engine, which offers content suggestions based upon each customer's personal musical tastes.
Ericsson offers Napster Mobile as a hosted service, a business model that makes it easy, fast, and cost-efficient for operators to launch the service. The service includes mobile operator participation in all revenue streams.
The Napster Mobile service provides consumers with a simple way to search and browse Napster's enormous music catalog and allows them to preview, purchase and play songs on their mobile handsets through an integrated music player.
Napster Mobile is also the first mobile music service to offer fully-integrated dual-delivery of music, meaning when consumers use their handsets to request content, a downloadable copy is sent directly to the phone and an additional copy is simultaneously sent to their PCs, enabling them to manage all of their content in one location. Using Napster's award-winning PC software, consumers can listen to their purchased music, create play lists, rip and burn CDs and even transfer songs to other portable devices.
Napster Mobile is based on SDP Media, Ericsson's service delivery platform tailored for media solutions, and works on handsets from all major manufacturers.
Brad Duea, Napster's President says: "Napster Mobile enables wireless operators to offer their customers a superior music experience from a recognized digital music leader. We are confident that the combination of Napster's music expertise with Ericsson's mobile music solution and wireless industry proficiency will appeal to wireless carriers and customers alike."
Hans Vestberg, Executive Vice President Global Services Ericsson, says: "Operators gain access to one of the biggest digital music brands in the world through Napster Mobile. We feel confident that the service will allow mobile operators to seize opportunities for digital music on the mobile phone and PC that they might not have had access to before."
Napster is responsible for music programming, full-length track content aggregation, PC development, and backend integration to the service. Ericsson takes responsibility for aggregating handset specific content such as ring tones, images and logos, and handling operator sales, wireless application development, operator integration, hosting, content settlement through Ericsson Internet Payment eXchange (IPX), and operator support. Due to the customer benefits and the value of offering the impressive Napster catalog, there is great interest for Napster Mobile among operators worldwide. The dual delivery functionality will be available when the service launches in initial markets.
Ericsson is shaping the future of Mobile and Broadband Internet communications through its continuous technology leadership. Providing innovative solutions in more than 140 countries, Ericsson is helping to create the most powerful communication companies in the world.
Read more at http://www.ericsson.com/press
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT
Ericsson Media Relations
Phone: +46 8 719 6992
E-mail: press.relations@ericsson.com
About Ericsson's Managed Services offering
Ericsson has the telecom industry's most comprehensive managed services offerings, ranging from designing, building, operating and managing day-to-day operations of a customer's network, to hosting service applications and enablers, as well as providing network coverage and capacity on demand. As the undisputed leader in managed services, Ericsson has officially announced over 60 managed services contracts with operators worldwide since 2002. In all current managed services contracts, excluding hosting, Ericsson is managing networks that together serve 53 million subscribers worldwide.
About Napster
Napster, the biggest brand in digital music, is a subscription service that enables fans to freely sample the world's largest and most diverse online collection of music and move an unlimited amount of songs to compatible portable audio players. Napster (www.napster.com) members have access to Napster's catalog of over 1.5 million songs from the major labels and hundreds of independents and have more ways to discover, share and acquire new music and old favorites with community features like the ability to email tracks to friends and browse other members' collections. Napster also offers Napster Light, a "lighter" version of the service for those who just want to purchase songs and albums a la carte. Napster is now available in the United States, Canada, Germany and the U.K. and is headquartered in Los Angeles with offices in New York, London, Frankfurt and Tokyo. Read more at: www.napster.com
mrktmaker
18 years ago
Napster Denies Rumors As It Posts 3Q Loss
Wednesday February 8, 7:46 pm ET
By Gary Gentile, AP Business Writer
Napster Denies Rumors That Company Is for Sale or on Verge of Shutting Down As It Posts 3Q Loss
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Music download service Napster Inc. sought Wednesday to counter rumors that it was for sale or on the verge of shutting down.
Napster Chairman and Chief Executive Chris Gorog told investors the company was not looking to sell itself and that recent layoffs were designed to run the company more efficiently.
Gorog made his comments as part of the company's third-quarter earnings presentation. Napster swung to a loss in the quarter as the company increased spending on marketing its online music service, although the loss was less than analysts had expected.
Gorog told analysts on a conference call that last month's layoff of about 10 middle-management workers was evidence that the company "made some nips and tucks to overhead to run our operations more efficiently. Nothing more, nothing less."
The company has been beset by recent rumors that it might be bought by Google Inc.
Gorog said the company routinely fields inquiries and evaluates them "with seriousness." He said the company intended to reward investors through internal growth, but it could, "at some point" provide growth through "a strategic alignment.
"We certainly have no shortage of admirers," Gorog said.
The company said it had enough cash on hand to operate through 2007.
Napster posted a deficit of $17 million, or 40 cents per share, for the three months ended Dec. 31, compared to income of $12.8 million, or 36 cents, the year before. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial were looking for a loss of 61 cents per share.
Revenue for the period totaled $23.5 million, almost twice the $12.1 million from a year earlier and in line with analysts' consensus target.
Napster said it added 66,000 subscribers during the quarter. Although its music revenue rose sharply, Napster also increased its sales and marketing expenses 68 percent, to $15.4 million from $9.2 million a year ago.
The company said it expects revenue of $25 million in the fiscal fourth quarter, and it expects expenses to decrease. Analysts were predicting revenue of $26.1 million.
Napster shares rose 12 cents, or 3.3 percent in after-hours electronic trading. The stock added 3 cents to close at $3.61 in the regular session on the Nasdaq, before the earnings report was released.
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