Microsoft to Acquire Musicwave, Gaining Foothold with Mobile Operators

Microsoft plans to acquire Musiwave SA, a Paris-based provider of mobile music entertainment services to operators and media companies. The acquisition would bring Musiwave’s relationships with music labels, device makers and mobile operators that deliver digital entertainment to consumers, together with Microsoft’s Connected Entertainment technologies and services, including Windows Mobile, Zune, MSN and Windows Live. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Musiwave, a unit of Openwave Systems, provides 2.5 and 3G mobile music services such as full length and protected digital music downloads (MODS), multimedia ringtones (Pictones), real music ringtones (Musitones), mobile video, and digital music recognition. Customers include T-Mobile, Vodafone, Orange, O2, Mobistar, Fareastone and Telefonica amongst others.

http://www.microsoft.com

http://www.musiwave.net/