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Tidal could sue streaming service’s former owners

By Chris Cooke | Published on Thursday 31 March 2016

In amongst all that bragging about the many exclusives it’s secured in its first year as a Jay-Z led business, Tidal somehow forgot to tell us about the pending lawsuit. Don’t they know, we love a pending lawsuit? I mean, a Kanye exclusive is one thing, but messy litigation, now that might be worth $10 a month.

According to Norwegian business newspaper Dagens Næringsliv, two companies which had significant stakes in Aspiro – the company that operated WiMP and its Tidal spin-off, and which Jay-Z’s business bought in order to launch the all new Tidal service last year – could be sued over allegations the rapper’s company was not given accurate information ahead of last year’s acquisition.

Dagens Næringsliv says that media company Schibsted and venture capitalists Verdane have both received letters from Tidal’s current owners accusing them of “significantly” exaggerating user numbers and misrepresenting how well the WiMP company was doing ahead of Jay-Z’s big purchase. And it seems litigation could now follow.

According to tech site Breakit, a spokesperson for Schibsted was keen to stress that Aspiro was a publicly-listed company ahead of the acquisition, meaning key information about the firm was routinely made available in line with the rules and regs of being a public company. As a result, the firm told reporters, it is “unsympathetic” to the letter from nu-Tidal and the allegations contained within.

However disappointed Team Tidal may have been after buying up the WiMP business a year ago, surely they can now secure the exclusive rights to this lovely legal battle, assuring it never never never appears on Apple Music. Except, maybe, occasional reworked snippets.