The internet radio service TuneIn has been sold for a total of one hundred seventy-five million dollars. The buyer is the music and technology company Stingray Group, which will pay one hundred fifty million dollars at closing and up to twenty-five million dollars one year later. Stingray financed the acquisition with a loan from its renewed credit facility.
Founded in 2002, TuneIn was an early pioneer in the online audio space. Unlike competitors such as Apple Music or Spotify that focus on ad-free, subscription-based music on demand, TuneIn specialized in streaming traditional radio stations over the internet. This approach allowed TuneIn to offer a wide variety of content beyond music, including news, talk, and live sports. The company attempted to monetize its service through a paid subscription that also provided access to audiobooks and ad-free radio channels.
However, TuneIn struggled to compete effectively in the crowded streaming market. This was due in part to a consumer shift from talk radio to podcasts and a growing public comfort with paying for ad-free music subscriptions.
Stingray, a Montreal-based company that owns radio stations and provides music technology and advertising services, acquired TuneIn to significantly expand its reach. The acquisition is strategic, leveraging TuneIn’s extensive partnerships with device manufacturers, automakers, and content providers. TuneIn’s content is available on more than two hundred platforms and connected devices, including over fifty different in-car audio systems, and it spans more than one hundred countries.
The one hundred seventy-five million dollar purchase price was determined based on TuneIn’s forecasted sales of one hundred ten million dollars and an adjusted EBITDA of thirty million dollars for the twelve-month period ending December 31, 2025. TuneIn boasts over seventy-five million monthly active listeners around the world.
Stingray has confirmed that the TuneIn brand will remain following the acquisition. Once the deal is finalized, Stingray expects its total company revenue to exceed four hundred million dollars.