Music site Last.fm bought by CBS for $280m

BBC NEWS Technology Music site Last.fm bought by CBS

So, another mammoth price for an online media business. Last.fm has been bought by CBS Corporation for $280m, making it the largest-ever UK Web 2.0 acquisition…so far.

Last.fm was founded in the UK in 2002 and claims it has more than 15 million active users.

I’ve heard lots of good reports from Last.fm users but I have an account and have never really got engaged with the service. I wonder if in the due diligence I was counted as an active user?

It is always interesting to do this sum:

price paid/active users = price per email address for future marketing

In this case it is:

£140m/15m = £9.33

I seem to recollect a figure of £10 per email address being bandied about when Friends Reunited was purchased by iTV.

author avatar
Kevin Harrington
I’m a UK-based B2B marketing consultant, specialising in strategic advice for SME business owners. I bring extensive hands-on expertise to every client engagement. Senior leadership roles across technology, media, payments, and publishing have shaped my practical approach. Highlights include serving as Chief Marketing Officer at The Panoply plc (now TPXimpact), Chief Commercial Officer at Tungsten Network, and Global Marketing Director at BBC Worldwide. Over the years, I’ve guided numerous SMEs through transformation and value creation. Helping businesses evolve and thrive is a genuine passion. Practical marketing insights and succession planning strategies are at the heart of what I do, as I believe growing a business’s asset value should be a rewarding and positive journey for every entrepreneur.

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *