Indian Music Streaming App Saavn Raises $100m in Funding

 

As telecommunication infrastructure improves across India, more users are purchasing smartphones and accessing the Internet than ever before. Apps focused on Indian users have emerged as a result of this growing market, and quickly cornered live streaming music. Saavn, the Indian equivalent of Pandora online radio just raised $100 million in series C funding.

The latest funding round values the company at $350 million. Funding was lead by Tiger Global, Bertelsmann India Investments, Liberty Media, and Steadview Capital, as well as a handful of hedge funds headquartered in Hong Kong.  

One hundred million dollars is a lot of money, but Saavn’s track record and long-term plans for innovation helped catapult the music app into success. Currently, there are 14 million unique monthly visitors—up from 11 million at the start of this year.  

The competition is fiercely fighting over this vital market, which is only going to grow stronger as more Indian users get online. Among the competition are Times Internet-owned Gaana, Rdio and Hungama, which also secured 100 million dollars in funding earlier this year.  

According to CEO and co-founder Rishi Malhotra, innovation is at the center of everything the company strives to do. 

“We innovated to deliver the first music streaming platform dedicated to India in 2009,” said Malhortra. “We launched the first Android app for Indian music in 2011, and the first iOS app in 2012…while our products have many features, innovation is perhaps the best one.”

Saavn plans to use its funding to scale its latest features and expand its services as demand continues to grow. They are currently working to move into streaming video technology, another content area predicted to explode in India throughout the next several years. 

In 2013 the company launched its first mobile subscription product, Saavn Pro, which is similar to other streaming radio upgrades that allow a user to listen to music without commercial interruption. 

Malhotra is excited to offer a product that’s exclusively for Indian users, and now, one that will operate better than ever.  

“Enjoy our music while flying at 30,000 feet, reduce data streaming charges while commuting…[we] deliver the highest-fidelity audio available to users,” he said.  

The app is currently available to download for both iPhone and Android users. Desktop computer users can enjoy live streaming music as well online at www.saavn.com.