The one time world’s favourite illegal music download platform and peer-to-peer music-sharing-and privacy service Napster has been purchased by a consortium of companies as the newest to join the Web3 and NFTs token roster to bring “bring the iconic music brand to Web3.”
Napter was bought by crypto investment firm Hivemind, a “a crypto-focused investment firm dedicated to blockchain technologies, crypto companies and the digital assets ecosystem,” and Algorand, operators of “the world’s most decentralized, scalable, and secure blockchain infrastructure.”
The Alogrand blockchain will be used for the Napster launch. Matt Zhang, Hivemind managing partner shared in a LinkedIn post that said, “Dear friends, we are excited to share that we’ve taken Napster Group private, and to bring the iconic music brand to Web3.”
The rebirth of an internet legend
Zhang continued, “Volatile market and uncertain times often bring exciting opportunities. At Hivemind, we believe in developing thesis and building enduring value. Music x Web3 is one of the most exciting spaces we’ve come across, and we are thrilled to work with Emmy Lovell and many talents to unlock value for the entire ecosystem and revolutionize how artists and fans enjoy music.”
Mike Troiano, G20 Ventures partner also shared in a Medium post why his company is investing in Napster where he said, “Powered by a new generation of technology but inspired by the same pirate spirit, the new Napster will combine a streaming catalog of over 42 million songs with exciting new features built on a secure, open, and carbon-negative blockchain to unlock new ways for people who make and love music to connect, share and profit together,” Troiano said.
As the newest to join the Web3 and NFT space in the music sector, Napster follows Winamp and LimeWire, which announced an entry into the space earlier this year. Both Napster and LimeWire are two popular brands from the early 2000s that helped pioneer music downloads for free.
Earlier this week, Universal Music Group signed on to join the LimeWire Algorand marketplace. Universal is one of the major roster of some of the biggest artists in the world. The deal will allow artists the opportunity to sell NFTs on the forthcoming music blockchain platform from LimeWire.
The LimeWire NFT marketplace will focus on assets like artwork and collectibles from musicians. Some of its investors include Crypto.com and Kraken.
Isa Muhammad is a writer and video game journalist covering many aspects of entertainment media including the film industry. He's steadily writing his way to the sharp end of journalism and enjoys staying informed. If he's not reading, playing video games or catching up on his favourite TV series, then he's probably writing about them.
