If the agreement is implemented, Apple would along with the Beats hardware department responsible for headphones get a music service which for about $ 10 a month allows user to listen to music on demand. Even though Apple has a good relationship with the Beats and offers their headphones in their stores, it is speculated that the main motive for the acquisition of Beats is the Beats Music service.

If the information about the price Apple will pay are accurate, it will be their biggest acquisition so far. According to survey data, so far the largest Apple's acquisition was NeXT, for which they paid $429 million in the 1996.

[Ed - The speculation about the music service seems to be off track with what Apple has been trying to do lately. Altough they could make a good deal of money be opening up an on demand service, they could easily implement that on their own without the need to drop 3.2 billion on Beats. It is a little more likley that they are looking for some help with their audio quality. Right now Apple is not ranked very high in audio quality when compared to most of the competition (including Windows phones). They might feel that the inclusion of the Beats audio profiles and/or use of beats designed headphones will bolster sales in an the now highly media oriented market. We will have to see if this strategy pays off for them...]

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