Google Reportedly Interested In Buying SoundCloud For $500 Million

SoundCloud may very well be owned by Google in the foreseeable future.

According to a report from Music Business Worldwide, Google is interested in acquiring the streaming company for $500 million. Previous reports had claimed that Spotify was in the running to purchase SoundCloud, but backed out after the latter set a price tag that was approximately $1 billion (this same amount pushed a way a number of other potential buyers including Twitter, although the social media platform ended up investing $70 million into the streaming service).

The report also includes information on some of the major labels that have stakes in SoundCloud, which include Universal, Sony and Warner. If SoundCloud sells to Google then those three labels would get approximately $45 million between them.

Google being the top contender to buy out SoundCloud should not come as much of a surprise. The report also highlights the fact that the streaming company hired its first ever Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Holly Lim, in September of last year, with Lim serving as a Google executive before her move. Lim was brought on to maintain the financial health of the Berlin based company.

"I'm excited to work with the entire executive team at SoundCloud as a strategic business partner and lead the company's finance strategy," Lim had said in a statement. "This new role presents an opportunity to not only help a burgeoning company grow – but develop the company vision and strategy with an entrepreneurial executive team."

Maybe Lim's involvement with SoundCloud is a contributing factor to Google being the "current favorite" to buy, but we will see if a deal is made between the two some time this year.

Read the full report here.