在過(guò)去一年中,支付初創(chuàng)公司Square的股價(jià)就像美國(guó)《公告牌》(Billboard)中的熱門歌曲一樣一飛沖天,其股價(jià)增長(zhǎng)了兩倍,推動(dòng)其市值超過(guò)了1000億美元大關(guān)。
3月4日,這家由杰克·多爾西領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的公司同意以近3億美元的價(jià)格,收購(gòu)小眾流媒體音樂(lè)服務(wù)Tidal的大部分股權(quán),將這個(gè)如歌般的美夢(mèng)變成了現(xiàn)實(shí)。
乍一看,這筆交易對(duì)Square來(lái)說(shuō)并不劃算,其2020年底手頭的現(xiàn)金額達(dá)到了32億美元。Square稱Tidal的營(yíng)收(Tidal并未透露)少得可憐,甚至都不會(huì)對(duì)Square 2021年的財(cái)務(wù)業(yè)績(jī)帶來(lái)重大影響。
然而,此次收購(gòu)將為饒舌明星Jay-Z以及公司旗下碧昂絲和酷玩樂(lè)隊(duì)(Coldplay)的克里斯·馬丁等藝人帶來(lái)豐厚的利潤(rùn),他們于2015年以5600萬(wàn)美元的價(jià)格收購(gòu)了Tidal,后者當(dāng)時(shí)的公司名為Aspiro。他們?cè)谛鹿救詫⒈A羯俨糠止蓹?quán)。
然而,如果Square有意向其支付核心業(yè)務(wù)之外的領(lǐng)域擴(kuò)張,那么此次交易對(duì)Square來(lái)說(shuō)可謂是意義重大。亞馬遜(Amazon)在成為百貨網(wǎng)站之前僅出售書(shū)籍。Square是否會(huì)效仿這一策略,從消費(fèi)支付向處理各類消費(fèi)者在線交易的零售商發(fā)展?
Square已經(jīng)在其核心業(yè)務(wù)的基礎(chǔ)上向外拓展,公司利用其Cash應(yīng)用程序幫助人們相互轉(zhuǎn)賬,最近還增添了比特幣轉(zhuǎn)賬和交易功能。
Tidal可能是另一條業(yè)務(wù)擴(kuò)張道路上的首個(gè)案例。Square開(kāi)發(fā)了諸多技術(shù)專長(zhǎng)和軟件工具,在幫助商戶收取消費(fèi)者付款的同時(shí)與其互聯(lián),并鼓勵(lì)消費(fèi)者購(gòu)買更多的商品。這可能會(huì)成為幫助Tidal音樂(lè)人更好地與粉絲互聯(lián)并從中獲利的模板。
Square的硬件負(fù)責(zé)人杰西·多羅古斯克(將負(fù)責(zé)Tidal業(yè)務(wù))在一則聲明中說(shuō),Square“在為賣家和個(gè)人打造優(yōu)雅、易訪問(wèn)以及公平的工具方面設(shè)立了較高的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)?!毕乱徊綄⑹恰疤剿餍滤嚾斯ぞ?、聽(tīng)眾體驗(yàn)以及訪問(wèn)金融系統(tǒng)的渠道,從而幫助藝人獲得成功。”
一開(kāi)始,Square可以幫助音樂(lè)藝人向3600萬(wàn)Cash應(yīng)用程序用戶推銷其商品
首席執(zhí)行官杰克·多爾西也與Jay-Z合作設(shè)立了一只比特幣投資基金,他在推特(Twitter)上進(jìn)一步解釋說(shuō),Squae-Tidal合并專注于“利用全新的收聽(tīng)體驗(yàn)將粉絲更緊密地聯(lián)系在一起,并通過(guò)商品銷售的簡(jiǎn)單整合、現(xiàn)代的協(xié)作工具,以及新的補(bǔ)充營(yíng)收流,為藝人尋找支持其工作的新方式。”
然而,多爾西并未談及一個(gè)顯而易見(jiàn)的問(wèn)題——NFT(不可替代代幣)。它是一種獨(dú)特的數(shù)字跟蹤器,基于區(qū)塊鏈技術(shù),很多藝人開(kāi)始將其與自己的作品相關(guān)聯(lián),并在拍賣中出售。盡管數(shù)字作品能夠被輕易地復(fù)制,但NFT的復(fù)制卻很難,也為賣家提供了一種更強(qiáng)烈的所有感。在過(guò)去幾個(gè)月中,NFT交易的價(jià)值已經(jīng)增至數(shù)億美元。
藝人也開(kāi)始將目光投向了NFT,Kings of Leon將成為首個(gè)發(fā)行電子代幣并將其與新專輯掛鉤的樂(lè)隊(duì)。那些購(gòu)買代幣的人將獲得額外的專輯作品、額外下載以及其他福利。
幫助Tidal音樂(lè)人銷售NFT還可以借鑒Square在其Cash應(yīng)用程序服務(wù)中添加比特幣的成功經(jīng)驗(yàn)。使用應(yīng)用程序來(lái)購(gòu)買和銷售比特幣的人士在2019年第四季度為Square創(chuàng)造了2.17億美元的收入。有鑒于比特幣價(jià)格自此之后的漲幅,令人略感吃驚的是,該業(yè)務(wù)在今年第四季度貢獻(xiàn)的收入增長(zhǎng)了近9倍,達(dá)到了18億美元,相當(dāng)于Square季度銷售總額的56%,比其前輩,也就是零售支付和非加密貨幣Cash應(yīng)用程序業(yè)務(wù)的合并營(yíng)收都要多。
不過(guò),這里依然存在諸多的挑戰(zhàn)。盡管Tidal在藝人中十分流行,但其訂閱用戶的數(shù)量要遠(yuǎn)低于Spotify和蘋果音樂(lè)(Apple Music)這類競(jìng)爭(zhēng)對(duì)手。(Square拒絕透露Tidal的用戶數(shù)量,但分析師稱其占比可能不到全球市場(chǎng)的1%。)再者,Square可能會(huì)為Tidal藝人創(chuàng)作工具,這樣,他們無(wú)需注冊(cè)Tidal便能夠銷售T恤衫、下載內(nèi)容,甚至NFT。
相對(duì)于Square和Tidal,規(guī)模更大的競(jìng)爭(zhēng)對(duì)手可能會(huì)花更多的錢來(lái)打造不同的方式,并通過(guò)提升商品和其他項(xiàng)目的銷售量,來(lái)幫助音樂(lè)人賺更多的錢。蘋果或Spotify將不遺余力地花重金說(shuō)服流行明星通過(guò)自身服務(wù)來(lái)發(fā)行NFT。
多爾西在3月4日說(shuō):“我們一開(kāi)始不會(huì)做得很大,而且將專注于藝人最關(guān)鍵的需求,并發(fā)展其粉絲群?!?/p>
有鑒于競(jìng)爭(zhēng)的規(guī)模,這可能是一個(gè)錯(cuò)誤的決定。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:馮豐
審校:夏林
在過(guò)去一年中,支付初創(chuàng)公司Square的股價(jià)就像美國(guó)《公告牌》(Billboard)中的熱門歌曲一樣一飛沖天,其股價(jià)增長(zhǎng)了兩倍,推動(dòng)其市值超過(guò)了1000億美元大關(guān)。
3月4日,這家由杰克·多爾西領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的公司同意以近3億美元的價(jià)格,收購(gòu)小眾流媒體音樂(lè)服務(wù)Tidal的大部分股權(quán),將這個(gè)如歌般的美夢(mèng)變成了現(xiàn)實(shí)。
乍一看,這筆交易對(duì)Square來(lái)說(shuō)并不劃算,其2020年底手頭的現(xiàn)金額達(dá)到了32億美元。Square稱Tidal的營(yíng)收(Tidal并未透露)少得可憐,甚至都不會(huì)對(duì)Square 2021年的財(cái)務(wù)業(yè)績(jī)帶來(lái)重大影響。
然而,此次收購(gòu)將為饒舌明星Jay-Z以及公司旗下碧昂絲和酷玩樂(lè)隊(duì)(Coldplay)的克里斯·馬丁等藝人帶來(lái)豐厚的利潤(rùn),他們于2015年以5600萬(wàn)美元的價(jià)格收購(gòu)了Tidal,后者當(dāng)時(shí)的公司名為Aspiro。他們?cè)谛鹿救詫⒈A羯俨糠止蓹?quán)。
然而,如果Square有意向其支付核心業(yè)務(wù)之外的領(lǐng)域擴(kuò)張,那么此次交易對(duì)Square來(lái)說(shuō)可謂是意義重大。亞馬遜(Amazon)在成為百貨網(wǎng)站之前僅出售書(shū)籍。Square是否會(huì)效仿這一策略,從消費(fèi)支付向處理各類消費(fèi)者在線交易的零售商發(fā)展?
Square已經(jīng)在其核心業(yè)務(wù)的基礎(chǔ)上向外拓展,公司利用其Cash應(yīng)用程序幫助人們相互轉(zhuǎn)賬,最近還增添了比特幣轉(zhuǎn)賬和交易功能。
Tidal可能是另一條業(yè)務(wù)擴(kuò)張道路上的首個(gè)案例。Square開(kāi)發(fā)了諸多技術(shù)專長(zhǎng)和軟件工具,在幫助商戶收取消費(fèi)者付款的同時(shí)與其互聯(lián),并鼓勵(lì)消費(fèi)者購(gòu)買更多的商品。這可能會(huì)成為幫助Tidal音樂(lè)人更好地與粉絲互聯(lián)并從中獲利的模板。
Square的硬件負(fù)責(zé)人杰西·多羅古斯克(將負(fù)責(zé)Tidal業(yè)務(wù))在一則聲明中說(shuō),Square“在為賣家和個(gè)人打造優(yōu)雅、易訪問(wèn)以及公平的工具方面設(shè)立了較高的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)?!毕乱徊綄⑹恰疤剿餍滤嚾斯ぞ?、聽(tīng)眾體驗(yàn)以及訪問(wèn)金融系統(tǒng)的渠道,從而幫助藝人獲得成功?!?/p>
一開(kāi)始,Square可以幫助音樂(lè)藝人向3600萬(wàn)Cash應(yīng)用程序用戶推銷其商品
首席執(zhí)行官杰克·多爾西也與Jay-Z合作設(shè)立了一只比特幣投資基金,他在推特(Twitter)上進(jìn)一步解釋說(shuō),Squae-Tidal合并專注于“利用全新的收聽(tīng)體驗(yàn)將粉絲更緊密地聯(lián)系在一起,并通過(guò)商品銷售的簡(jiǎn)單整合、現(xiàn)代的協(xié)作工具,以及新的補(bǔ)充營(yíng)收流,為藝人尋找支持其工作的新方式?!?/p>
然而,多爾西并未談及一個(gè)顯而易見(jiàn)的問(wèn)題——NFT(不可替代代幣)。它是一種獨(dú)特的數(shù)字跟蹤器,基于區(qū)塊鏈技術(shù),很多藝人開(kāi)始將其與自己的作品相關(guān)聯(lián),并在拍賣中出售。盡管數(shù)字作品能夠被輕易地復(fù)制,但NFT的復(fù)制卻很難,也為賣家提供了一種更強(qiáng)烈的所有感。在過(guò)去幾個(gè)月中,NFT交易的價(jià)值已經(jīng)增至數(shù)億美元。
藝人也開(kāi)始將目光投向了NFT,Kings of Leon將成為首個(gè)發(fā)行電子代幣并將其與新專輯掛鉤的樂(lè)隊(duì)。那些購(gòu)買代幣的人將獲得額外的專輯作品、額外下載以及其他福利。
幫助Tidal音樂(lè)人銷售NFT還可以借鑒Square在其Cash應(yīng)用程序服務(wù)中添加比特幣的成功經(jīng)驗(yàn)。使用應(yīng)用程序來(lái)購(gòu)買和銷售比特幣的人士在2019年第四季度為Square創(chuàng)造了2.17億美元的收入。有鑒于比特幣價(jià)格自此之后的漲幅,令人略感吃驚的是,該業(yè)務(wù)在今年第四季度貢獻(xiàn)的收入增長(zhǎng)了近9倍,達(dá)到了18億美元,相當(dāng)于Square季度銷售總額的56%,比其前輩,也就是零售支付和非加密貨幣Cash應(yīng)用程序業(yè)務(wù)的合并營(yíng)收都要多。
不過(guò),這里依然存在諸多的挑戰(zhàn)。盡管Tidal在藝人中十分流行,但其訂閱用戶的數(shù)量要遠(yuǎn)低于Spotify和蘋果音樂(lè)(Apple Music)這類競(jìng)爭(zhēng)對(duì)手。(Square拒絕透露Tidal的用戶數(shù)量,但分析師稱其占比可能不到全球市場(chǎng)的1%。)再者,Square可能會(huì)為Tidal藝人創(chuàng)作工具,這樣,他們無(wú)需注冊(cè)Tidal便能夠銷售T恤衫、下載內(nèi)容,甚至NFT。
相對(duì)于Square和Tidal,規(guī)模更大的競(jìng)爭(zhēng)對(duì)手可能會(huì)花更多的錢來(lái)打造不同的方式,并通過(guò)提升商品和其他項(xiàng)目的銷售量,來(lái)幫助音樂(lè)人賺更多的錢。蘋果或Spotify將不遺余力地花重金說(shuō)服流行明星通過(guò)自身服務(wù)來(lái)發(fā)行NFT。
多爾西在3月4日說(shuō):“我們一開(kāi)始不會(huì)做得很大,而且將專注于藝人最關(guān)鍵的需求,并發(fā)展其粉絲群?!?/p>
有鑒于競(jìng)爭(zhēng)的規(guī)模,這可能是一個(gè)錯(cuò)誤的決定。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:馮豐
審校:夏林
Shares in payments startup Square have been rising like a hit song on the Billboard charts for the past year, tripling in price and giving the company a market value of over $100 billion.
On March 4, the Jack Dorsey–led company brought that song metaphor to life, agreeing to buy a majority stake in niche streaming-music service Tidal for almost $300 million.
At first glance, the deal is a blip for Square, which had $3.2 billion of cash on hand at the end of 2020. And Square said Tidal’s revenue, which it didn’t disclose, is so small that it would have no material impact on its financial results in 2021.
But it’s a big payday for Jay-Z, the star rapper, and the group of artists, including Beyoncé and Coldplay’s Chris Martin, who paid $56 million in 2015 for Tidal, then called Aspiro. They’ll retain a minority stake in the new venture.
Still, the deal could be significant for Square if it kicks off an expansion beyond its core payments business. Amazon, before it became the everything store, sold only books. Could Square follow that strategy by moving beyond consumer payments to retailers into handling all sorts of consumer online transactions?
Already, Square has branched out from its core business into helping people transfer money to each other via its Cash app, most recently adding Bitcoin transfers and trading.
Tidal could be just the first example of another avenue for expansion. Square developed a lot of technical know-how and software tools to help merchants not just take payments from consumers but also stay connected with them and encourage them to shop more. That could be a template for helping musicians on Tidal better connect with—and make money from—their fans.
Square “set a high standard for building elegant, accessible, and fair tools for sellers and individuals,” said Jesse Dorogusker, Square’s head of hardware, who will oversee Tidal, in a statement. The next move will be to “explore new artist tools, listener experiences, and access to financial systems that help artists be successful.”
To start with, Square could help musical artists pitch their merchandise to 36 million Cash app users.
CEO Jack Dorsey, who also partnered with Jay-Z on a Bitcoin investment fund, further elaborated on Twitter that the Square-Tidal mashup is focused on “finding new ways for artists to support their work” with “entirely new listening experiences to bring fans closer together, simple integrations for merch sales, modern collaboration tools, and new complementary revenue streams.”
Dorsey didn’t mention the elephant in the room, NFTs, or non-fungible tokens. Those are the unique digital trackers created using blockchain technology that a broad range of artists have started attaching to their work and selling at auction. While a digital work can be easily copied, the NFT cannot, giving buyers a stronger sense of ownership. In just the past few months, the value of NFT transactions has grown to hundreds of millions of dollars.
Musicians are starting to look at NFTs too, with Kings of Leon planning on Friday to become the first band to release digital tokens tied to a new album. People who buy the tokens will get additional album art, bonus downloads, and other perks.
Helping Tidal musicians sell NFTs would also bring into play Square’s success with adding Bitcoin to its Cash app service. People using the app to buy and sell Bitcoin generated $217 million of revenue for Square in the fourth quarter of 2019. Given how Bitcoin’s price has increased since, it’s little surprising that revenue from that business rose nearly ninefold in the fourth quarter of this year to $1.8 billion. That amounts to 56% of Square’s total quarterly sales, more than its older retail payments and non-crypto Cash app businesses combined.
There remain many challenges. Though Tidal is popular with artists, it has far fewer subscribers than rivals such as Spotify and Apple Music. (Square declined to disclose how many subscribers Tidal has, but analysts say it’s likely less than 1% of the global market.) Then again, Square could create tools for Tidal artists that wouldn’t require a Tidal subscription to sell T-shirts, downloads, or even NFTs.
And larger competitors may have more money than Square and Tidal to spend on building new ways to help musicians make more money by promoting sales of merchandise and other items. Nothing is stopping Apple or Spotify from paying big money to pop stars to convince them to release NFTs via their services.
“We’re going to start small and focus on the most critical needs of artists and growing their fan bases,” Dorsey said on March 4.
That may be a mistake given the size of the competition.