Welcome to Music Enterprise Worldwide’s weekly round-up – the place we be certain you caught the 5 greatest tales to hit our headlines over the previous seven days. MBW’s round-up is supported by Centtrip, which helps over 500 of the world’s best-selling artists maximize their revenue and scale back their touring prices.
In a submission to the UK authorities’s session on AI and copyright legislation, Sony Music revealed that it has already requested the elimination of greater than 75,000 AI-generated deepfakes of its artists’ content material, illustrating simply how quickly this drawback has exploded.
Additionally this week, Blackstone, which acquired Hipgnosis Songs Fund final yr for $1.58 billion, introduced that it’s rebranding Hipgnosis belongings as Recognition Music Group. Nevertheless, MBW‘s sources say the Hipgnosis title might dwell on, as Merck Mercuriadis has apparently retained the rights to it, and will use it because the title of his new firm.
In the meantime, MBW broke the information this week that Harmony could be very shut to creating one other vital acquisition. This time, the goal is Stem, a Los Angeles-headquartered music distribution and funds platform, in what our sources inform us is a excessive eight-figure deal.
Whereas Harmony is shopping for, Pershing Sq. is promoting. Invoice Ackman‘s funding agency is planning to promote a 2.7% stake in Common Music Group for $1.4 billion, based on a Bloomberg report.
Lastly, Imagine launched its 2024 annual report, displaying income development of 11.5% YoY on an natural foundation to EUR €988.8 million (USD $1.070 billion).
Sony Music has challenged the UK authorities’s proposed copyright reforms, revealing it has already requested the elimination of greater than 75,000 AI-generated deepfakes of its artists’ content material.
The music large warned that proposed modifications to copyright legal guidelines can be “rushed, unbalanced and irreversible” and will considerably hurt the British artistic economic system.
In a submission to the federal government’s session on AI and copyright legislation, obtained by the Monetary Instances and The Sunday Instances, Sony described the proposals as a menace to an business that contributes £7.6 billion (USD $8.23 billion) yearly to the UK economic system.
The session, which closed on February 25, facilities on plans to introduce a “textual content and knowledge mining” exemption that might enable AI firms to make use of copyrighted supplies for coaching functions with out permission until creators particularly choose out…
Blackstone has introduced that it’ll not be utilizing the Hipgnosis title.
As an alternative, it’s bringing collectively its 45,000 songs and the crew charged with maximizing their earnings below a brand new model: Recognition Music Group.
As a part of this refresh, Blackstone hints that additional acquisitions could also be on the way in which, noting in a press launch: “Constructing on its relationship with songwriters and artists and as a extremely succesful enterprise for buying and managing catalogues, Recognition is nicely positioned for future development and to ship superior returns to its buyers.”
Trade whisperers inform MBW that, simply as Storm Thorgerson wished all these years in the past, Merck Mercuriadis has retained his rights to the Hipgnosis title and firm identification.
In actual fact, one supply means that Mercuriadis is probably going to make use of the Hipgnosis title for the brand new firm he’s constructing, which is ready to be unveiled later this yr…
MBW hears that Harmony could be very shut to creating one other vital acquisition.
Our sources inform us that the corporate is within the closing phases of buying Stem, a Los Angeles-headquartered music distribution and funds platform, in a excessive eight-figure deal, above $50 million.
The deal isn’t fairly accomplished but, based on our sources. We additionally hear that The Raine Group is in the midst of it.
This information arrives round 4 months after Harmony efficiently closed an asset-backed securities (ABS) transaction, which noticed the corporate elevate $850 million in debt financing by means of a personal securitization backed by its catalog of music rights…
Invoice Ackman’s Pershing Sq. is ready to boost $1.4 billion from the sale of “a few 2.7% stake” in Common Music Group.
That’s based on Bloomberg, which reported this afternoon (March 13) that it has seen phrases of a deal that present “Pershing Sq. Holdings Ltd., Pershing Sq. LP and Pershing Sq. Worldwide Ltd. are poised to cost an providing of about 50 million Common Music shares at €26.60 every”.
Bloomberg additionally reported that Morgan Stanley is engaged on the share sale.
In an announcement printed on X on Thursday, Ackman mentioned: “We determined to promote a portion of our UMG place as we speak”…
Paris-headquartered music firm Imagine has printed its monetary outcomes for FY 2024 (the 12 months ending December 31).
In keeping with Imagine’s submitting, the corporate generated revenues of EUR €988.8 million (USD $1.070 billion) in 2024 throughout its complete enterprise.
The corporate’s FY revenues grew by €108.5 million ($117.42m), from €880.3 million in 2023, reflecting a rise of 12.3% YoY.
On an natural foundation (at a like-for-like perimeter and fixed change charge), Imagine’s revenues grew 11.5% YoY….
MBW’s Weekly Spherical-Up is supported by Centtrip, which helps over 500 of the world’s best-selling artists maximise their revenue and scale back their touring prices.Music Enterprise Worldwide
