Samsung Electronics Co., the world’s largest mobile phone and memory chip manufacturer, said Thursday that it has acquired a U.S. cloud service provider to strengthen its mobile entertainment business.

Samsung said it has taken over California-based mSpot Inc. that provides music, movies and radio content to mobile users. The U.S. company located in Palo Alto also has ties with many major telecommunication service providers in the United States that could benefit Samsung.

Samsung said that it has acquired all of mSpot Inc.’s technology, assets and personnel. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“The acquisition will permit Samsung to enhance its cloud-based streaming solution clout and build up the company’s entertainment services for mobile devices,” Samsung said. “mSpot could act as a conduit to permit competitive local contents to reach a wider global market.”

The latest move comes as Samsung’s chief rival Apple Inc. has set up its own cloud service iCloud.

Industry insiders speculated that Samsung paid around 10 billion won ($8.74 million) for the cloud service company. They said that in the long run, the tech giant may create its own cloud-streaming service to expand the scope of applications it can give to consumers who buy its mobile devices such as the Galaxy series phones. 

(Yonhap News)