SiriusXM to Buy $480M Stake in Pandora

The company will have a 16 percent holding in the personalized online radio firm.

Satellite radio firm SiriusXM said Friday that it has agreed with Pandora to make a $480 million strategic cash investment in the personalized online radio service.

Under the terms of the agreement, a subsidiary of SiriusXM will purchase news convertible preferred stock of Pandora, while SiriusXM has already bought $172.5 million of preferred stock representing a stake of 19 percent in Pandora, or a 16 percent stake when converted.

"Through this agreement, SiriusXM is making a strategic investment in the leading U.S. provider of ad-supported digital radio," the companies said. "With a loyal quarterly audience of nearly 100 million listeners in the U.S., Pandora is by far the leading player in the burgeoning digital audio advertising market. The capital provided through the SiriusXM investment will allow Pandora to make targeted investments and capitalize on opportunities to build on its position in the streaming radio business."

John Malone's Liberty Media controls SiriusXM.