Neil Hughes
Apple may bolster its streaming media services with the addition of technology and talent from Swell, a personalized news radio application currently available for iPhone, which it is said to have bought for $30 million.
Apple's alleged purchase of Swell was revealed by Re/code, which said the Swell app is expected to be shut down this week after the deal closes. Key to the acquisition is reportedly the simplified user interface that lends itself well to in-car listening.
Swell is a free download on the iOS App Store and is well reviewed, with 436 users giving it an average score of 4 and a half stars out of 5.
The deal could affect Apple's iTunes Radio service, which is a Pandora competitor that recently gained talk radio stations. The technology could also be implemented in Apple's own iOS Podcasts app, which is poorly reviewed by users on the App Store.
Pitching itself as "news radio rebooted," Swell claims to offer "a smart and effortless way to listen on your smartphone." Partners providing content to the app include National Public Radio, ABC News, American Public Media, and Ted.
The Swell app analyzes what users listen to and uses that data to create a personalized podcast stream. The simplified menus allow users to simply hit play and begin hearing content that may be of interest.
News of the alleged deal comes only a few days after Apple confirmed it purchased BookLamp, a sort of "Pandora for Books." That deal closed in April, and was said to be worth $10 million to $15 million.
During Apple's quarterly conference call for the third fiscal quarter of 2014, CEO Tim Cook revealed the company has completed 29 acquisitions over the past nine months, including the purchase of Beats for $3 billion.
Amber Neely
Andrew Orr
William Gallagher
Christine McKee
AppleInsider Staff
Chip Loder
16 Comments
I bet the demand for degrees in 'curation science' has gone through the roof since Jimmy Iovine turned the concept into the hottest thing around at the moment. I am surprised there are not online courses advertising, with slogans such as 'become a curator of anything and get bought for millions!'
I'm always curious why Apple shuts down the apps they purchase. Doesn't that open up the door and force the people who use that app to find an alternative? What if they like that better? It couldn't take much to continue that app in its current form.
[quote name="digitalclips" url="/t/181586/apple-expected-to-buy-personalized-talk-radio-app-swell-for-30-million#post_2570121"]I bet the demand for degrees in 'curation science' has gone through the roof since Jimmy Iovine turned the concept into the hottest thing around at the moment. I am surprised there are not online courses advertising, with slogans such as 'become a curator of anything and get bought for millions!'[/quote] *excluding museums and cemeteries. :)
[quote name="digitalclips" url="/t/181586/apple-expected-to-buy-personalized-talk-radio-app-swell-for-30-million#post_2570121"]I bet the demand for degrees in 'curation science' has gone through the roof since Jimmy Iovine turned the concept into the hottest thing around at the moment. I am surprised there are not online courses advertising, with slogans such as 'become a curator of anything and get bought for [S]millions[/S] billions!'[/quote] Fixed it for you. ;)
Because they then create their own service based on it.