The list of investors behind Spotify‘s imminent new funding round of $400m (€373m) has been unmasked – but there could be a catch.
It was revealed last week that the funding round, which would value Spotify at $8.4bn, would be led by Goldman Sachs and an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund.
Now Sky News has revealed the full list of companies looking to buy a stake in the Swedish company.
In addition to Goldman Sachs, another fellow existing Spotify investor, Technology Crossover Ventures (TCV), is ready to pump more cash into the company.
Others in the round include historic London-based hedge fund Lansdowne, plus the Abu Dhabi Investment Council, Baillie Gifford, DE Shaw, Discovery Capital Management, Halcyon Asset Management, Northzone, PSAM, Rinkelberg Capital and Senvest Capital.
“Sky insiders described the universal licensing deal as ‘crucial’ and said it would not be signed until the two sides reach ‘mutually agreeable terms’.”
But if the deal is to go ahead, the streaming company may first need to agree a new licensing agreement with Universal Music Group.
These discussions – with a deadline later this year – are currently on a knife-edge, with Spotify continuing to insist that its ‘freemium’ tier is essential to lure back millions of music pirates to its service.
In a bid to push more consumers to Spotify’s premium offering, Universal, led by Lucian Grainge (pictured), is believed to be pressing for some restrictions on Spotify’s ad-funded tier – likely some kind of time restrictions or capped playcounts for users.
Sky reports that it “it was unclear whether the group of investors will formally commit capital until Spotify has agreed a renewal of a licensing contract it has with Universal Music Group”.
Insiders described that deal as “crucial” and said it would not be signed until the major and streaming giant had settled upon “mutually agreeable terms”.
Universal is a stakeholder in Spotify, with the three major labels owning somewhere around 15% of the Swedish company.
With the deadline for its Spotify licensing re-negotiation looming, time will tell if that $8.4bn valuation softens UMG’s attitude in its ongoing freemium discussions.
Spotify: investment rounds to date
- November 2013: $250m – Technology Crossover Ventures
- November 2012*: $100m – AFSquare, The Coca-Cola Company, Fidelity Ventures, Lakestar, Goldman Sachs
- June 2011: $100m – DST Global, Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers, Accel Partners
- February 2010: $12.3m – Founders Fund, Sean Parker
- August 2009: $50m – La Ka-shing, Horizons Ventures, Wellingtons Partners
- October 2008: $21.6m – La Ka-shing, Creandum, Northzone, Horizons Ventures
* An additional funding round is believed to have taken place in 2012 for an undisclosed amount.Music Business Worldwide
