Reuters reported on Tuesday that a meeting took place in February between Apple CEO Tim Cook and hip-hop mogul Jimmy Iovine where they discussed a music service dubbed “Project Daisy.”
Citing people familiar with the matter, Reuters reported that Apple’s chief of media Eddy Cue also joined the meeting, which was said to be “informational” as it covered a wide range of music-related topics including Beats’ “Project Daisy” music streaming service. The sources say that while Cook expressed interest in the service’s business model and future plans, no official deal was struck.
Earlier this year, while talking with to AllThingsD, Iovine noted that he planned to meet with Cook “soon” but no further details were forthcoming. During the same interview, the Beats exec said he pitched a similar idea to the late Steve Jobs in 2001. Jobs reportedly expressed interest in the idea, but balked at how much he would have to pay the record companies.
Iovine, who is also chairman of the Interscope-Geffen-A&M music label, has a rich history with Apple, and was one of the first to sign a deal with the Cupertino firm over what would come to be known as iTunes.
Apple has long been rumored to be working on a music streaming service to compete with the likes of Rhapsody, Spotify, and others.
