Gracenote has now been purchased by Sony Corporation of America, according to details announced Tuesday.
The deal values Gracenote at $260 million, and is expected to close next month.
Gracenote offers a number of content identification and media-related metadata services. The company started by identifying CD-based contents for computer listeners, though its broadening dataset is now integrated into a broad range of PC applications and consumer electronics products. “Gracenote is a global leader in technology and services for digital media identification, enrichment, and recommendation, and these capabilities will be essential to the next wave of innovation in content, services, and consumer electronics,” explained Tim Schaaff, Sony Corporation of America senior vice president of Software.
Sony indicated that Gracenote would be treated as a separate division after the merger. Parent company Sony Corporation carries a 50 percent stake in joint venture label Sony BMG.