Alibaba is one of the largest companies in China, and was founded in 1999 by billionaire Jack Ma.
Across its divisions, Alibaba operates in e-commerce, retail, internet services, and technology.
The company generated the equivalent of $72 billion in revenue in the calendar year ended March 2020, alongside an operating profit of $23.5bn.
NetEase Cloud Music investment and Xiami Music closure
In 2019, Alibaba acquired a minority stake in NetEase Cloud Music, China’s second biggest music streaming services company.
That deal saw a total investment of $700m in NetEase Cloud Music from both Alibaba and Yunfeng.
In January 2020, Alibaba announced that it would be shutting down its own music streaming service, Xiami Music.
In that announcement, Alibaba told consumers [translated]: “Due to operational adjustments, we will stop the service of Xiami Music,” said Alibaba in a post announcing the news.
“It’s hard to say goodbye after being with you for 12 years.”Music Business Worldwide