Jay Z's Tidal will now be available to Sprint's 45 million customers. Today phone service company announced that it acquired a 33 percent stake in Tidal, giving its customers unlimited access to the service. Of the transaction, Jay Z said in a press release, "Sprint shares our view of revolutionizing the creative industry to allow artists to connect directly with their fans and reach their fullest, shared potential." He added: "[Sprint CEO] Marcelo [Claure] understood our goal right away and together we are excited to bring Sprint's 45 million customers an unmatched entertainment experience."A closely related source told Billboard that the deal is worth an estimated $200 million and Tidal's two dozen artist-owners like Rihanna, J. Cole, Alicia Keys and others will remain on board. "Jay saw not only a business need, but a cultural one, and put his heart and grit into building Tidal into a world-class music streaming platform that is unrivaled in quality and content," Sprint CEO Claure added. "The passion and dedication that these artist-owners bring to fans will enable Sprint to offer new and existing customers access to exclusive content and entertainment experiences in a way no other service can."The deal also includes a $75 million "dedicated marketing fund" just for artists.Follow Noisey on Twitter
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