Dr Dre celebrates as Apple nears US$3.2 billion Beats acquisition

Apple are on the verge of acquiring music-streaming service provider Beats Electronics, in a deal believed to be worth up to US$3.2 billion.

Revealed first by the Financial Times, the deal stands to be Cupertino’s biggest ever acquisition.

Founded by music producer Jimmy Iovine and hip-hop star Dr Dre, Beats is best known for its headphones, but has recently entered the subscription-based music streaming service.

According to a host of media sources both companies are in “advanced talks” regarding a deal, which is expected to be finalised as early as this week should things go according to plan.

If the acquisition were to occur, it would be the largest purchase in company history, ahead of Apple's $429 million purchase of NeXT in 1996.

But as the tech giant prepares to seal its biggest acquisition yet, analyst firm Forrester Research appear baffled by the deal.

"This is really puzzling," says James McQuivey, analyst, Forrester Research. "You buy companies today to get technologies that no one else or customers that no one has.

“Nothing that I can compute adds up to $3 billion. They must have something hidden under the hood."

The deal could make Dr. Dre the first billionaire in the hip-hop music industry in terms of net worth, with the music star currently holding 15% ownership in the company.