HTC striking $300M deal for Beats Audio in phones

Ahead of a “major announcement” scheduled for tomorrow morning, HTC boss Peter Chou seems to have blown cover with AllThingsD today, announcing a $300 million investment in Beats Audio -- yes, the Beats by Dr. Dre and Heartbeats by Lady Gaga guys. What does $300 million in an audio lifestyle brand buy, exactly? It’s actually a full-on investment in the company that will earn HTC an exclusive on Beats Audio for phones, which seems to suggest that HP’s use will stop at PCs and the TouchPad -- the Pre 3 and future webOS phones would presumably be off the table. Chou says the first Beats-powered phone will launch later in 2011.

Beats Audio’s Jimmy Iovine also chatted with AllThingsD and confirmed the deal. To be fair, it’s not clear whether this particular news is the announcement happening tomorrow morning, but considering that Peter Chou will be conducting the press call from Los Angeles -- Jimmy Iovine’s backyard -- it all seems to be coming together.

Source: AllThingsD