Shazam Deal Values Company At $1B

Investors poured $30 million into music-discovery company Shazam Entertainment Ltd. in a deal that closed Tuesday, company executives said.

The new investors' stake is equivalent to just under 3% of the company, valuing London-based Shazam at about $1 billion, according to Executive Chairman Andrew Fisher.

He declined to identify the investors, but he said they hadn't previously invested in the company.

Shazam's popularity stems from its ability to quickly scan sound waves from a piece of recorded music, compare the pattern with its database of 35 million songs and return matching information such as the artist, song name, album, lyrics, and where to listen or buy that song.

The company initially made money by charging for each match, then started taking a cut of digital music downloads from services such as Apple's iTunes. The company says it is still responsible for one in 10 digital song sales. But customers are increasingly turning to subscription music services, such as Spotify Ltd.