Beats By Dre Headphones Get Half a Billion Dollar Investment From Equity Firm
On Friday, Beats Electronics LLC, known for its popular headphones 'Beats By Dre' and other electronic devices, announced a half a billion dollar boost in capital from the Washington-based top private equity firm, The Carlyle Group.
Beats started selling headphones back in 2008, the majority owned by its founders, music mogul Jimmy Iovine and acclaimed Hip-Hop producer and artist Andre Young, best known as Dr. Dre. In addition the pricey headphones, which are sold over $100, Beats Electronics also has speakers and sound systems for Hewlett-Packard and HTC phones in its portfolio. In 2012, Beats purchased online music streaming service Mog for more than $14 million.
With the secured $500 million investment, the company is now valued at over $1 billion, compared to the roughly $600 million valuation put on the company by an investment from smartphone company HTC Corp two years ago. Also, the shareholder CG will occupy two of six seats on Beats' board.
In addition, Beats Electronics will also buy back the remaining 25 percent stake, which is previously owned by HTC Corp, of Taiwain for $265 million. Beats also paid off a $150 million note held by HTC.
"These transactions represent the evolution of the financial strength and significant growth prospects of Beats," Iovine says. "Carlyle is a fantastic investment partner and we look forward to building the next chapter of Beats."
Dr. Dre recently placed within the top 3 highest paid Hip Hop artists on the Forbes list. Beats Electronics has a monopoly on the headphone game: it already takes up 64 percent of the market for headphones costing more than $100. It's on slate to take in $1.2 billion dollars in revenue in 2013. The investment will indeed push Beats to become a global consumer electronics company selling headphones, speakers and audio software.