Deezer, the global music streaming service, is set to accelerate its growth following a capital increase of €160 million from new and existing investors.
Alongside the private placement, Rotana and Deezer have also signed an exclusive long-term agreement to distribute Rotana’s popular digital audio and video content in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The distribution agreement covers fast-growing entertainment markets including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.
The agreement with Rotana puts Deezer in the driving seat in a fast-growing region with over 400 million people. Deezer will draw on its proven experience as a leader in France and Latin America to power up the development of music streaming in the fast-growing MENA markets.
Kingdom Holding company (KHC) is one of the world’s most successful diversified investment firms that is internationally renowned for its investment in both high-performance global companies and strategic regional interests. Known as one of the largest investors in the world, KHC’s disciplined investment approach spans the globe and includes leading market segments, such as ridesharing, e-commerce and social media (Lyft, Careem, JD.com, and Twitter).
Rotana Group is the Middle East’s leading diversified media company. For more than 25 years, Rotana has been the region’s leading producer and distributor of Arabic music and has had a large list of acclaimed artists (more than 80% of Superstars in the Arab World), together with an unmatched catalog of more than 13,000 full-digitized tracks and 2,000 video clips. Through its Rotana Media Services and Hypermedia, it owns two of the region’s most successful advertising sales operations. It also operates one of the largest TV networks in the region, with a bouquet of leading free-to-air channels. Furthermore, Rotana owns the largest Arabic movie and music libraries in the world.
“The investment of Kingdom Holding and Rotana Group in Deezer represents one of the many premium investments that we have always sought for our shareholders and the signing of the distribution agreement will move Rotana to the international arena”, said HRH Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Kingdom Holding Company and Chairman of Rotana Group.
“Kingdom Holding Company’s investments in digital technologies are at the top of our strategic investments for the foreseeable future. Digital services will clearly be the platform to exchange literature and entertainment across the globe”, said KHC’s CEO Eng. Talal Ibrahim Al Maiman.
“Rotana is the world’s premier provider of award-winning Arabic music. We are now expanding our reach and distribution by partnering with Deezer, a leading global digital music streaming service, to deliver our high-quality music content to an ever-growing global listenership in the Middle East, North Africa and other regions around the world. While this agreement is mutually beneficial to both companies, Rotana’s award-winning artists will reap the most benefit from this exciting new and expanded global platform”, said Mr. Salem Al Hindi, CEO of Rotana Audio.
“I would like to welcome our new shareholders KHC and Rotana to Deezer and I’m excited to work with them to take Deezer to the next level. The new funding enables us both to accelerate our expansion in fast-growing international music markets and strengthen our positions in key territories. The exclusive long-term distribution agreement also provides us with a unique opportunity to build future market leader positions in exciting markets”, said Hans -Holger Albrecht, CEO of Deezer.
“We have transformed the business and delivered significant growth over the past three years. Our service has some of the highest engagement levels in the industry, which has helped us grow our subscriber base. We are excited by the significant growth potential ahead of us”, added Hans-Holger Albrecht, CEO of Deezer.
“We are proud to support Deezer’s continued growth. These deals clearly show the significant value that has been created in the company. Deezer is a French Tech success story, competing on a global scale and I look forward to continuing to support the management team as they grow the business”, said Guillaume d’Hauteville, Chairman of Deezer and Vice Chairman of Access Industries.
Citi acted as financial adviser to Deezer on the transaction, Cleary Gottlieb acted as legal adviser of Deezer on the private placement while Jones Day represented Deezer on licensing matters.
The closing of these transactions is expected by the end of August 2018
Stay tuned to Silicon Canals for more updates in the tech startup world.
— Press Release
