MUMBAI: A joint statement released by Micromax Informatics and Gaana, it was revealed that the handset maker has bought a stake in the streaming service company for an undisclosed sum. Through this partnership, the music service will now focus on its goal of reaching 100 million users.

The deal includes the integration of the music app on all Micromax smartphones, enabling mobile users to seamlessly access the Gaana app from their devices. New Micromax users will also be offered free trials of Gaana+, which includes unlimited downloads and ad-free subscription of the service. However, after the trial period, users can choose to continue with Gaana+ to access over 10 million songs with ad-supported streaming.

Speaking about the new partnership, Times Internet CEO, Satyan Gajwani said, “Gaana is becoming a household brand for music, and in partnership with Micromax, we will strengthen our footprint, helping us reach our goal of 100 million Indian users, listening to millions of songs via Gaana."

Micromax’s efforts to build an ecosystem of connected devices in a connected world received a huge boost with this collaboration, believes Rahul Sharma, the co-founder of Micromax Informatics. "India is a music-loving country and youth are hooked on music for at least 2-3 hours a day through their smartphones. Gaana brings the widest selection of songs across genres and we are proud to announce our strategic partnership with them," he said.

Gaana has a library of over 10 million songs with ad supported streaming services in 45 languages. With over 20 million active users and reaching 30 million downloads, the company hopes to add more numbers to its record and leverage its consumer footprint.