Merged content company will reach 400m subscribers in nearly 30 countries.
This is a natural fit for both firms, giving US-based Livewire penetration into Europe and emerging markets such as the Middle East, where Fonestarz has a presence.
For the UK company, the acquisition promises scale and access to technology and R&D. It told ME the deal takes its tech team from six to 47 'overnight'.
Livewire is best known for its music services, expecially ringbacks, having grown out of NMS and acquired competitor Groove Mobile in 2008.
Meanwhile Fonestarz grew out of a background in wallpapers to develop a repertoire encompassing all content products.
Its services are currently deployed with operators including Vodafone, Hutchison 3 and O2 in countries including the UK, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, Austria, New Zealand, South Africa and Egypt.
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It also has content aggregation agreements with Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Samsung and LG, and content licenses with more than 140 brands including Disney, Playboy, Turner, American Greetings and Manchester United.
However, the Fonestarz deal that may have alerted Livewire to potential synergies was the one to supply DRM-free full-track music, ringtones and music videos to Vodafone New Zealand.
Livewire will now incorporate the FoneStarz platform into its Infuse integrated storefront solution and Mediadrome D2C music service.
Dave Moreau, CEO of Fonestarz and COO of the new company, told ME: “We've reached the point where clients were asking us for a scale we couldn't deliver – and we knew it was a case of 'get bigger or die'
"So this deal is perfect for both sides – giving us access to the technology, content and reach that our customers want, and giving Livewire access to new markets.
"And I should stress that this is not a cost-cutting synergistic deal. It's about growth. In fact, we'll be recruiting."
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
