Headphone maker set to be snapped up.

Apple is reportedly closing in on a deal to buy Dr Dre’s Beats empire for $3.2bn (£1.9bn).

The deal would include Beats’ recently launched streaming service and its lucrative headphone business. If completed, it will be the technology giant’s biggest ever acquisition.

The Financial Times was the first to report the talks, citing a source that said the two firms were still negotiating the details.

Beats was founded by Dre and music producer Jimmy Iovine in 2008 and has become one of the most popular headphone brands on the market. Last September the company was valued at more than $1bn, so the $3.2bn price tag is a huge increase.

Industry experts are confused by the news, however, as there is a large overlap of customers between the two companies.

“This is really puzzling,” said one analyst cited by BBC News. “You buy companies today to get technologies that no one else or customers that no one has […] They must have something hidden under the hood.”

FACT took a closer look at the new Beats Music streaming service this year to see if it lives up to the hype.