Apple confirms it's buying Shazam

Just days after TechCrunch first reported that Apple was close to acquiring music-identification app Shazam, the companies have confirmed the deal (a somewhat unusual move for Apple). No terms have been disclosed but it was reportedly for about $400 million, according to several outlets.

Why it matters: Shazam's technology is a natural fit to continue driving downloads to iTunes, subscriptions to Apple Music, and to help with music (and voice) recognition as part of Siri and Apple's upcoming HomePod home speaker.

From Shazam:

We are excited to announce that Shazam has entered into an agreement to become part of Apple. Shazam is one of the highest rated apps in the world and loved by hundreds of millions of users and we can’t imagine a better home for Shazam to enable us to continue innovating and delivering magic for our users.

Apple's statement to Recode:

We are thrilled that Shazam and its talented team will be joining Apple. Since the launch of the App Store, Shazam has consistently ranked as one of the most popular apps for iOS. Today, it’s used by hundreds of millions of people around the world, across multiple platforms. Apple Music and Shazam are a natural fit, sharing a passion for music discovery and delivering great music experiences to our users. We have exciting plans in store, and we look forward to combining with Shazam upon approval of today’s agreement