The company, which at one point had 60m users swapping digital music files for free, has entered into a $8m (£5.7m) takeover deal with the German media giant, as it seeks to maintain some sort of existence.
It filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a federal court in Delaware this week. Most of the company's 70 staff, including founder Shawn Fanning and CEO Konrad Hilbers, quit last month after failing to secure more funding for the service from Bertelsmann.
Napster had been one of the internet's success stories during the 1990s, but record companies were outraged that it allowed users to obtain their output without paying a cent. Legal proceedings followed and Napster was forced to severely cut back on its offering.
Bertelsmann is thought to want Napster to help build its digital music business via a subscription-based swapping service. However, its acquisition of the company is not guaranteed. If Napster should receive a higher offer, it is still able to accept it prior to the completion of the Bertelsmann transaction.
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