The US launch of music service Spotify could be imminent as the company secures 100 million US dollars in funding. Reports have it the that the London-based Swedish startup has been negotiating for six months to conclude the round. Funds come from the private investment firm Digital Sky Technologies, one of the major shareholders in Facebook, investsment firm Accel Partners and venture capital company Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. The latter has stakes in Twitter and is reportedly investing 50 million US dollars alone in Spotify in return for a 5 per cent stake in the music service.
The funding round ups the total value of Spotify to 1 billion US dollars, according to AllThingsDigital.
Speculation have it Spotify could be launching in July, despite not having signed with Warner Music Group yet, the third largest music label in the US. During a conference in London, Spotify General manager Jonathan Forster said Spotify would not launch in the US “before 5 July,” which is the first time anyone from the company has actually put any firm timeline on the plans.
