Music Business Worldwide (MBW)’s Post

Universal Music Group is on an acquisition spree this week, bolstering its already star-studded catalogue with even more hits and doubling down on its 'superfans' strategy. 📀 Chord Music Partners: Universal Music Group has acquired a 25.8% minority stake in Chord Music Partners for $250 million, valuing Chord at $1.85 billion. This partnership involves UMG and Dundee Partners, forming a long-term strategic alliance to manage Chord's rights globally and potentially acquire more catalogues in the future. Chord was established in 2021 by KKR and Dundee Partners, boasting a portfolio of roughly 60,000 music intellectual properties from renowned artists like The Weeknd, David Guetta, and others. UMG plans to administer Chord's music publishing rights through Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) and its recorded music through Virgin Music Group. KKR will exit Chord once the transaction is complete, with the Dundee consortium and UMG owning 74.2% and 25.8%, respectively. 🏪 Complex: Universal Music Group, along with NTWRK, a 'Live Video Shopping' platform, is acquiring a stake in Complex, a youth-oriented media platform. This is the second time that Complex has been acquired in recent years, with it being sold to BuzzFeed for $294 million in November 2021. BuzzFeed confirmed itself that NTWRK (along with a consortium) has agreed to buy Complex Networks for $108.6 million. According to UMG's press release, the acquisition aims 'to create a new destination for “superfan” culture that will define the future of commerce, digital media, and music.' I have always been impressed by UMG's bets on the future and the larger picture, always one step ahead of the curve. I am putting the links to both press releases in the comments below. #MusicBusiness #MusicIndustry #UniversalMusicGroup #Fairplay #Perfunktory

It was announced yesterday that Universal Music Group and HYBE have inked a decade-long distribution deal. This partnership reflects the evolving ecosystem where distribution and label roles increasingly intersect, as highlighted in a recent Billboard article posted in mid-March. Notably, this deal doesn’t affect HYBE artists’ music presence on social platforms like YouTube, TikTok, or Meta, ensuring their continued dominance in digital spaces as a pivotal piece of the puzzle for marketing and rollout efforts. My two cents on this deal: this will add more fire to glocalization as we continue to see K-pop groups (under HYBE) dominate in US markets and proves that more major labels are looking to get into the distribution game with key partners. What do you think of this move? 👇 https://lnkd.in/gRq7GYKX #musicindustry #umg #hybe #news

Universal Music Group sees a future where 1 in 5 streamers pays for a 'super-premium' tier (and 3 other things we learned from UMG's Q1 earnings call) MBW Reacts is a series of analytical commentaries from Music Business Worldwide written in response to major recent entertainment events or news stories. #Universalmusicgroup #musicstreaming #superfans

One of the common assumptions around the boom in music-catalogue sales is that it’s all about big investment funds piling in with open wallets to disrupt the traditional ecosystem of music rightsholders. That’s certainly happened, but it’s not the whole story. In fact, what may be more interesting in the future are the partnerships formed between Big Investors and Big Music. Universal Music Group’s announcement yesterday that it is acquiring a minority stake in Chord Music Partners being a case in point. Universal Music Group will pay $240m to acquire a 25.8% interest in Chord, which sprang up in 2021 as a joint venture between investment firms KKR and Dundee Partners, and was used as the vehicle to spend $1.1bn acquiring a catalogue of more than 62,000 songs from Kobalt Capital that year. Fast forward to 2024, and a deal that will see KKR exiting Chord to be replaced by UMG. The deal values Chord at $1.85bn, with UMG owning 25.8% and Dundee Partners owning the other 74.2%. Read Our Full Analysis Here: https://lnkd.in/em3K8WWY #UMG #ChordMusic #MusicBusiness #musically #musicnews #readmore

I often don't pay attention to the major labels but one of the majors, or mini-majors, I do pay attention to is Warner Music Group due to their focus and investment in developing in-house technology as they look to preparing their business for the future of the music industry. Their success or failure with actually accomplishing this with technology leading the way is their success or failure and by no means is it grantee but as a music company who leveraged vendor's technology for some of the most critical functions of their business it worth paying attention to their progress, successes and failures. The industry will continue to evolve in the digital realm and having an adaptable technology stack will be critical not only for WMG, but all involved in the business of music.

Tips Industries Limited, a player in the music and entertainment industry, has announced the appointment of Kiran Dcruz as senior vice president for #brandstrategy and #partnerships ... Read More At:- https://lnkd.in/g6vQUkzz #musicindustry #news #media #NewsFlash #IBWNews #alltopnews #alltypesofnews #NewsUpdate #Todaysnews #NewsUpdate #dailynews #newsfeed #trendingnews #LatestNews #BreakingNews #Englishnews #Industrynews

Universal Music Group (UMG) has struck a 10-year deal with HYBE, the South Korean entertainment powerhouse behind global sensation BTS. This exciting collaboration involves several key aspects. UMG will be investing in HYBE’s Weverse platform to foster a deeper connection between fans and artists, UMG will distribute HYBE’s music globally, and the two companies will join forces on marketing and promotion to propel HYBE’s artists to become more successful in North America. HYBE chairman Bang Si-Hyuk expresses his excitement about the collaboration, “We are certain that this will expand our global footprint, while benefiting our fans, artists, and labels.” It's a win-win for both companies, with UMG gaining access to a rapidly growing fanbase and HYBE leveraging UMG's global network to further solidify its artists' international presence. UMG continues to show that they are making an effort to strengthen the relationship between their artists and their fanbases. We're excited about this renewed focus on super fans and enhancing fan engagement across the music industry. Superfans play a crucial role in an artist's career, and with industry leaders like Hybe, UMG, and With the Band, there's a clear dedication to nurturing artist-fan relationships in today's music landscape. #musicindustry #musicbusiness #fandom #music #fanengagement

Here’s a recap of recent music industry hires and in-house promotions as of October 9th, 2023. https://lnkd.in/gn9y6GKz #musicindustry #musicbusiness #musicnews #musicindustrynews #musicjobs #musiccareers

In a post-pandemic economy, the live-music industry has continued to display not only strong numbers in attendance, but also a continued fervor and interest from PE, showcasing a counterintuitive vitality in a cooling marketplace of rising interest rates 💹 The following report highlights an exciting acquisition of one of Europe's largest festival operators, Superstruct, by KKR (advised by Goldman Sachs) Key ideas 🌟 1. Fragmenting sectors of music consumption 2. Preference shift from "goods" to "experience"