Shazam, a company which launched a mobile app for recognizing music for users, may be
purchased by Apple, Business Insider reported based on an informed source. The deal, worth $400 million would give the American tech company the ability to employ the London-based startup’s technology in their products. Later investors in the company have a choice between continuing to own shares or liquidating them.

After being founded in 1999, Shazam launched its app, accumulating a billion downloads to date. The app, allows users to identify music they can hear, on-demand by pushing a button and allowing the app to work. The app, then uses a database of 11 million digital fingerprints to identify the song for the user.

A recent partnership with Bombay Sapphire, a brand of gin has allowed Shazam to use augmented technology developments. Users are now able to use the app to view information regarding certain labels. The Bombay Sapphire gin bottle, specifically, can be viewed in transformative ways using the technology developed by the startup.

According to Business Insider, the value of Shazam being reported at $1.2 billion was referred
to as being possibly inaccurate by a source in light of the deal’s purchase amount being
considered low for the expected value. The company had an accumulated revenue of $50 million last year.

This deal gives Apple benefit in a market where it’s competitors such as Google have begun
putting out products using music recognition technology. Google’s Pixel 2 phone, for example,
comes up equipment with a recognition technology which continually monitors and pulls up
music around the user.

(Picture courtesy: Shazam)