About Listen
Listen is a Media & Entertainment company based in Seattle (United States) founded in 1998, and was acquired by RealNetworks in February 2003. Customized ringback music and status messages are delivered to callers. Listen has raised $81.5 million across 6 funding rounds from investors including Universal Music Group, Warner Music and BMG. Listen has completed 2 acquisitions, including TuneTo.com and WiredPlanet. The company was acqui-hired. Its focus areas include Consumer, Music Tech and Music for Businesses. Its competitors include Mood Media, Vibenomics and feed.fm; 2 of its 3 listed competitors have raised funding.
Company details
Listen was founded in 1998 in Seattle, United States, and operates in the telecommunications sector. A mobile app is offered for users to select personalized songs or pre-recorded voice messages as ringback tones for incoming calls. The service is priced at 3 per month in the United States and is compatible with T-Mobile and MetroPCS networks. Additional features include automated SMS replies, calendar synchronization, and location-based detection for status updates.
- Headquarters Seattle, United States
- Stage Acquired
- SectorsMedia & Entertainment
- Website listen.com
- Social LinkedIn Facebook
- Acquired by RealNetworks (Feb 2003)
- Total Equity Funding$81.5M (USD)
in 6 rounds
- Latest Funding Round$10.4M (USD), Series D
Apr 2003
- InvestorsUniversal Music Group
& 11 more
- Investments & AcquisitionsTuneTo.com
& 1 more
- Acquired byRealNetworks
(Feb 2003)
Funding Insights of Listen
Listen has successfully raised a total of $81.5M across 6 strategic funding rounds. The most recent funding activity was a Series D round of $10.4 million completed in April 2003. This substantial capital infusion reflects strong investor confidence in the company's business model, growth potential, and market opportunities. The funding enables strategic expansion, product development, market penetration, and operational scaling to drive long-term value creation and competitive advantage.
- Total Funding $81.5M
- Total Rounds 6
- Last Round Series D — $10.4M
- Investors Count 11
All 6 funding rounds of Listen with amounts and investors; the two latest post-money valuations are shown, the rest are part of the premium plan.
| Date | Amount | Transaction Name | Valuation | Lead Investors | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2003 | $10.4M | Series D | – | – | – |
| Feb 2003 | Series D | – | – | – | |
| Oct 2002 | $1.1M | Series D | – | – | – |
| Mar 2000 | $70M | Series D | – | – | |
| Feb 2000 | Series B | – | – | ||
| Oct 1999 | Series A | – | – |
12 investors in total: 12 institutional.
Investors in Listen
Listen has secured backing from 12 investors, including venture fund and institutional investors. Prominent investors backing the company include Universal Music Group, Warner Music and BMG.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| attractor.com | ||||
Venture capital investments in technology startups and entrepreneurs. | indexventures.com | |||
Venture capital is invested personally in fewer enterprises, with support provided for building game-changing businesses. | augustcap.com | |||
Venture capital investments in Texas-based companies. | austinventures.com | |||
Early-stage companies are funded by this venture capital firm. | altos.vc | Menlo Park, United States | ||
Delivers comprehensive customer experience services to enhance business interactions. | 1998 | transcosmos.com | Gardena, United States | |
Recorded music, publishing, merchandising, and audiovisual content are provided globally. | 1934 | universalmusic.com | Hilversum, Netherlands | |
BMG is associated with an unspecified business activity. | 2008 | bmg.com | Berlin, Germany | |
Music publishing company | 1958 | wmg.com | New York, United States | |
Music publishing and record labeling operations are conducted globally. | 1931 | emimusic.com | London, United Kingdom |
Investor details for Listen
The complete investor list, round-by-round participation and investor portfolios require an active premium plan.
- Complete investor list
- Round participation
- Investor portfolios
- Co-investor network
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Investments & Acquisitions by Listen
Listen has strategically engaged in corporate development activities, having acquired 2 companies. Notable acquisitions include TuneTo.com and WiredPlanet.
| Company Name | Description | Domain | Location | Founded | Acquired | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Application development, domain, and branding services are offered. | tuneto.com | Redwood, United States | 1998 | Apr 2001 | •••• | |
Online music store platform | wiredplanet.com | San Francisco, United States | 1995 | Sep 2000 | •••• |
Complete acquisition details for Listen
Acquired stakes, deal sources and the complete acquisition history require an active premium plan.
- Acquired stakes
- Deal sources
- Complete history
- Exports
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Timeline of Listen
6 dated milestones of Listen across 5 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded Listen is founded.
- Funding First funding round.
- Acquisition Acquires WiredPlanet.
- Acquisition Acquires TuneTo.com.
- Exit Acquired by RealNetworks.
- Funding Latest funding round, Series D, of $10.4M.
Competitors of Listen
Listen has 3 listed competitors in our database, 2 of them funded. They include Mood Media, Vibenomics and feed.fm.
| Company Name | Domain | Founded | HQ Location | Total funding | Employees | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| moodmedia.com | 2004 | Austin, United States | 592 | Delivers in-store music solutions to enhance business environments. | ||
| vibenomics.com | 2016 | Fishers, United States | $36.86M | Customized background music and real-time announcements are delivered to businesses. | ||
| feed.fm | 2011 | San Francisco, United States | $2.31M | 33 | Music as a service solution for user engagement |
Detailed competitors of Listen
The full competitor set, operating metrics and side-by-side benchmarks require an active premium plan.
- Full competitor set
- Operating metrics
- Benchmarks
- Competitive positioning
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Web traffic of Listen
The website of Listen (listen.com) receives about 6.4K visits a month.
- Monthly visits6.4K
▲ 159% vs previous month
Websites whose visitors overlap most with Listen. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| grooveshark.com | 100% | 4.6K | #6,202,118 | View details | |
| napster.com | 96% | 331.5K | #153,656 | View details | |
| mp3.com | 87% | 8.3K | #2,645,089 | View details | |
| jango.com | 84% | 994.2K | #54,091 | View details | |
| playlist.com | 79% | 85.9K | #482,367 | View details | |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
All 13 similar websites and full traffic analytics for Listen
The complete similar-websites list, audience overlap and engagement analytics require an active premium plan.
- 13 similar websites
- Audience overlap
- Engagement analytics
- Traffic by brand
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Top companies in Music Tech
3 companies that operate in the same segment as Listen (Music Tech) in United States, ranked by their profile score on The Company Check.
| Company | Description | Founded | Location | Total funding | Revenue | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AI-generated music and lyrics are created on an online platform. | 2021 | Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States | USD 775 M | 497 | ||
Broadcast radio channels are aggregated and streamed through subscriptions. | 2002 | San Francisco, California, United States | USD 98.35 M | |||
Decentralized audio distribution is enabled for creators via blockchain technology. | 2018 | San Francisco, California, United States | USD 16.1 M | 44 |
Unlock complete access to The Company Check
Get unrestricted viewing across everything we track — from companies and brands to investors, funding rounds, acquisitions, financials, and more.
- Unlimited viewing on all profiles Companies, investors, financials, funding, acquisitions & directors
- Full access to every database India & global coverage, advanced filters and rich profile details
- Always-on access from your team account Single premium plan for everything you see on the portal
Related news about Listen
Complete news archive for Listen
Full article history, source details, and older brand coverage require an active premium plan.
- Full article archive
- Source and publication date
- Older coverage
- Brand-specific news history
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Frequently Asked Questions about Listen
Listen was founded in 1998 and raised its 1st funding round 1 year after it was founded.
Listen is headquartered in Seattle, United States. It is registered at Seattle, Washington, United States.
Listen is a funded company, having raised a total of $81.5M across 6 funding rounds to date.
Listen was founded in 1998 in Seattle, United States, and operates in the telecommunications sector. A mobile app is offered for users to select personalized songs or pre-recorded voice messages as ringback tones for incoming calls. The service is priced at 3 per month in the United States and is compatible with T-Mobile and MetroPCS networks. Additional features include automated SMS replies, calendar synchronization, and location-based detection for status updates.
Listen's top competitors include Vibenomics, feed.fm and Mood Media.
Listen has made 2 acquisitions, including TuneTo.com, and WiredPlanet.
Listen has 12 investors. Key investors include Universal Music Group, Warner Music, BMG, RealNetworks, and EMI Music.
Yes. Listen was acquired by RealNetworks in February 2003.