beats

Observers have attributed Beats’ success primarily to two factors: a design that differentiates it from other luxury headphones, and slick marketing—but the most important factor may be something as simple as four scraps of metal.

The news comes in the wake of numerous reports that claim Apple has been prodding major music labels such as Sony and Universal Music Group to pull content from free on-demand music platforms

Co-founded by hip-hop artist Dr. Dre and music executive Jimmy Iovine, Beats Audio is well known for its popular headsets and speakers. In 2014, Apple acquired the headphone arm for $2.5B, and Beats Music (streaming service) for $500M - some of which was paid in stock, which raised some eyebrows.