Playlists.net, an online community where Spotify users share their playlists with others has been acquired by WEA subsidiary of Warner Music Group. The platform will continue operating independently after the deal whose financial details have not been disclosed, according to the press release.
Newcastle, England-based company was launched in 2009 as ShareMyPlaylists, and renamed as Playlists.net in 2013. It has claimed 1 million users, 150K playlists and 4.5 million listening sessions per month in the first half of 2014.
Founder and CEO Kieron Donoghue said: “We were approached by WEA earlier in the year to discuss ways in which we could collaborate and it became apparent that there was much to be gained by us joining forces. What’s really exciting is that WEA have committed to support Playlists.net as an independent platform, invest in its future and grow the team to take advantage of new opportunities in the streaming ecosystem. There is a huge appetite in WEA to further embrace streaming, develop new concepts and really innovate in this growing sector.”
WEA’s senior VP Larry Mattera said “Kieron’s success is due to the fact that he is a huge music fan, and has a uniquely creative take on how to engage other music fans,” he said. “This investment will enable Kieron to expand on his existing formula for success, as well as work to create new music experiences.”
Record labels have been putting more effort in recent years in curating and manipulating playlists to boost new releases. Universal Music houses Digster whereas Sony Music runs Filtr, to attract listeners to playlists that categorize tunes based on diverse genres, tastes and themes.
