Music Industry 2.0
Digital Music Group Inc. said Monday it bought Philadelphia’s Chancellor Records, including the master recordings of its whole catalog _ more than 2,000 tracks.
The company did not disclose financial details of the deal. Digital Music Group owns and distributes out-of-print, back catalog and independent label recordings.
Sony BMG Music Entertainment announced Thursday the resignations of the top two executives at its Sony Music Label Group, less than four months after the company’s owners appointed a new chief executive in a bid to resolve management discord.
The sudden departures of Don Ienner, chairman of the unit, and Michele Anthony, the president, ended the reign of two of music’s most powerful executives—each known for an aggressive, bare-knuckled style—who in the last 17 years built the careers of artists like Destiny’s Child, Pearl Jam and John Mayer.
The resignations came as Sony BMG’s new chief executive, Rolf Schmidt-Holtz, has been revamping the company, which ranks as the industry’s second-largest behind Vivendi’s Universal Music Group.
Pete Doherty looks adrift and rudderless today as it’s confirmed that Rough Trade records – the label that signed him after he split with his former band The Libertines – have decided against signing up Babyshambles for a second album.
The revered indie label formed off Portobello Road in the 1970’s, and is currently home to the Strokes in the UK. It’s been responsible for launching the careers of The Smiths and The Fall, but A&R staff have reportedly been unable to renegotiate with Doherty and co due to his erratic behaviour. Babyshambles were on a one-album deal, which they signed in early 2005.
EMI, the world’s third-largest music company, said its full-year profits climbed sharply on the success of artists such as Coldplay as it pursues the acquisition of its smaller rival Warner Music.
The company, whose initial $4.2 billion takeover bid was rebuffed by Warner Music earlier this month, said on Tuesday it continued to believe a deal “would be very attractive to both sets of shareholders”.
“We think this strong set of results shows that EMI is thriving in its own right, and I believe we’ve created a strong platform to pursue the possible acquisition of Warner Music Group,” Chief Executive Eric Nicoli said in a conference call with reporters. “The industrial logic is compelling and the synergies would unlock considerable additional value.”
EMI shares rose 1.4 percent to 264 pence by 0755 GMT.
Virgin has sold out of the music label V2 as it plans for a future that could result in the launch of a Virgin-branded music television station.
Virgin launched V2 in 1996 in a move heralded as Sir Richard Branson’s return to the music industry after his sale of Virgin Records in 1992. The sale of the new label follows Virgin Group’s deal with the cable television operator NTL which will soon offer customers a one-stop shop for cable television, fixed and mobile telecoms services and broadband internet under the Virgin brand.
Coldcut stride headlong into pop and politics on the eve of Ninja Tune’s 10th anniversary in Canada
Coldcut have virtually rewritten the history of music in the late 20th century, their influence reaching deep into the culture and development of both rave and hip-hop forms.
Borrowing from all worlds, the label management, DJ and production duo of Jon More and Matt Black have revolutionized the electronic music fan’s conception of a live show, penned the bible on down-tempo and ambient, and forever altered the future of the music industry with Ninja Tune, arguably the world’s most influential independent label. Ninja Tune has cut a swath of originality and authenticity through the grey-brown fabric of contemporary music with releases, through sub-labels Big Dada and NTone, that span every genre from rap and grime to trip-hop, acid jazz, breakbeats, house, drum’n’bass, rock, folk, and now, with the release of their long-awaited epic tour de force Sound Mirrors, pop itself.
Warner Music Group reported on Friday soaring digital music sales, even as the company continues to lose money and faces numerous lawsuits related to alleged price fixing of music downloads.
In documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Warner Music said the company has been named in 14 class-action lawsuits, most of which allege a “conspiracy among record companies to fix prices for downloads”.
Warner Music said in its quarterly statement filed on Friday: “The company intends to defend against these lawsuits vigorously.”
EMI Group PLC is preparing to tap investors to the tune of several hundreds of millions of pounds if it succeeds in its courtship of Warner Music, the US music group owned by Time Warner Inc, according to The Times.
The newspaper did not name its source, but said the heavily indebted British group needs to raise new equity to help to fund the cash element of its bid, which could amount to 1.5 bln stg. The total cost of the deal could be around 2.4 bln stg.
Aiming to capitalise on eastern Europe’s economic growth and the recent success of local artists, Universal Music is opening an office in Romania, its first new outpost in the region in more than a decade.
Universal Music, the world’s biggest music company, said on Monday it is first of the four music majors to set up a subsidiary in Romania. It already has licensing deals there.
The music company owned by Apple Corps today lost its legal battle against Apple Computer over the US firm’s use of an apple logo for iTunes.
The high court in London ruled that Apple Computer – makers of the phenomenally successful iPod music player – had not infringed upon Apple Corp’s trademarks by selling music through its iTunes Music Store.
“I find no breach of the trademark agreement has been demonstrated. The action therefore fails,” said Mr Justice Mann.