MUMBAI: The ninth edition of International Radio Festival (IRF) will be held from 29 October to 4 November 2018. This radio galore will be held at Valetta, Malta, which is Europe’s cultural capital for 2018.Having the niche of being the world’s first and sole conference, IRF’s first outing was at Z...
MUMBAI: After the $100 million funding it received in July this year, Saavn has now announced that it will have new investment coming from former Vodafone CEO, Arun Sarin. However, the company has not disclosed the amount Sarin will be investing in the company.
Sarin will bring on board his years of expertise to the mobile-focused company- Saavn. According to the press note, “Sarin was one of the first to predict the mass adoption of mobile phones in emerging markets. His support for Saavn underscores a similar trend underway in the music industry.”
“Music streaming is a core app on today’s smartphones, and Saavn is superbly positioned to grow rapidly in the fast expanding smartphone market in India. As an innovative and nimble music streaming company, at the heart of one of the world’s most valuable markets, Saavn hits all the right notes. I look forward to working with the Saavn team on the company’s continued progress,” Sarin said.
In July, a series C round of funding took place, which was led by Tiger Global Management, with participation from Bertelsmann India Investments, Steadview Capital, Liberty Media, Mousse Partners, Quilvest, and additional Hong Kong-based hedge funds.
The increase in funding has been supported by the growth Saavn witnessed, after reaching a milestone with daily active users increasing 10 times in India since last year. The service has over 250 million streams per month, made possible by a catalogue strength of 20 million plus songs. In just under two months, the company has grown to nearly 18 million monthly active users, from 14 million monthly active users in July this year, with vast majority coming from India.
“As we continue to build a world-class mobile entertainment company, we believe in collaborating with the best partners in the world. With over 90 per cent of our usage driven by smartphones, Saavn users are moving data plan transactions and driving data engagement at an incredible pace. In the coming months, you will see us work more deeply with carriers in India and additional territories,” said Saavn co-founder and CEO Rishi Malhotra.
Apart from its audio streaming service, the company is looking at venturing into video content as well.
Log on to www.radioandmusicbiz.com for more.
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