Tencent Music Entertainment said it has completed the full acquisition of Chinese audio platform Ximalaya in a deal valued at about 18.6 billion yuan ($2.6 billion), closing one of the country’s largest online audio mergers. Under the agreement, Ximalaya shareholders and employee stock ownership plan participants received up to $1.26 billion in cash and as many as 175 million Tencent Music Class A shares. China’s market regulator approved the deal on May 12 with five conditions, including requirements that the combined company not raise prices, reduce the proportion of free content, or enter exclusive licensing arrangements.
The acquisition, which took nearly a year to complete, strengthens Tencent Music’s position in China’s audio market by expanding beyond music streaming into podcasts, audiobooks and long-form audio content. [TechNode reporting]
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