Napster acquired by Hivemind, Algorand at undisclosed price

Napster, once popular in the early 2000s for peer-to-peer audio file sharing, has been acquired by Hivemind and Algorand, the teams announced today.

Emmy Lovell has been named interim CEO of Napster, where she previously served as chief strategy officer, according to her LinkedIn. Lovell is a music industry veteran, with previous gigs at Warner Music Group, EMI Music, Bauer Media, and the BBC.

Hivemind is a crypto-focused investment firm based in New York.

“Volatile market and uncertain times often bring exciting opportunities. At Hivemind, we believe in developing thesis and building enduring value. Music x Web3 is one of the most exciting spaces we’ve come across," Matt Zhang, Hivemind's founder and managing partner, wrote in a LinkedIn post announcing the acquisiton.

Two weeks ago, Hivemind undertook a similar effort in backing LimeWire with the aim of bridging a once-infamous file-sharing brand with web3.

“One of our core theses is in the value in nostalgic web1 and 2 brands combined with the technological potential of web3,” Hivemind had written on LinkedIn about the Limewire funding.

The terms of the Napster acquisition are unknown, including the exact structure given the role of two acquiring firms, and Hivemind did not release further information about the deal when asked to comment. Algorand did not respond to requests for comment.