eMusic owner JDS Capital’s private equity arm Dimensional Associates, which has been negotiating with online indie music distributor The Orchard for a few months now, has raised its bid to buy out the rest of the company it does not own, according to an SEC filing earlier this week. From the initial offer amount of $1.68 a share, which was then raised to $1.84, it has now been raised to $2 a share. The Orchard’s “special committee” is evaluating the offer and there are no guarantees a deal will get done.

Dimensional previously owned The Orchard (NSDQ: ORCD) prior to its 2007 merger with Digital Music Group Inc (DMGI), which saw the ownership structure change but the name remain. Dimensional still owns a majority of the firm, which lost its CEO and president Greg Scholl in last September. There have been some rumors about The Orchard possibly merging with eMusic, so that the value chain of a distributor and retailer gets complete; there have also been rumors about eMusic itself being for sale, so apparently nothing can be ruled at as of now.

OCRD’s stock had been dropping for most of second half of last year, before starting somewhat of a recovery since November after the bid news came out.

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