A partnership led by former Universal Music chief Edgar Bronfman Jr. has agreed to buy Warner Music Group for $2.6 billion cash, creating one of the world’s largest independent music companies.
The announcement Monday came just hours after London-based EMI Group PLC said it had withdrawn its offer to purchase Warner Music, a unit of the giant media conglomerate Time Warner Inc.
Under terms of the Bronfman group’s deal, Time Warner would retain an option to buy back a minority stake in the company, which is home to such artists as Madonna, R.E.M and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
The purchase, which also includes Time Warner’s Warner/Chappell Music publishing business, would create one of the world’s largest independent music companies and include some of the industry’s best known music labels, including Warner Bros., Atlantic and Elektra Records. [more @ www.abcnews.go.com]