The appointments last week of former News Corp. prez Peter Chernin and former Netflix CFO Barry McCarthy to Pandora’s board suggest that the entertainment biz may see its next IPO from the popular Internet radio service.
An initial public offering has long been rumored for the company that was founded during the Internet boom in 2000.
Founder and chief strategy officer Tim Westergren has been meeting in recent weeks with banks in hopes of raising $100 million in an offering, according to news reports.
Company said 80 million people in the U.S. listen to its personalized radio stations and its recommendations on PCs, mobile devices and connected devices at home like Blu-ray players. It boasts of being one of the top five most popular apps for smartphones.
Chernin is the founder of the Chernin Group and Chernin Entertainment, which produces TV shows and feature films. McCarthy, who left Netflix in December, was senior VP of cable and satellite music service Music Choice.
Other recent IPOs in the biz include Nielsen Holdings and Demand Media, both of which got big boosts from investors on their first day of trading last month.
