EMI in talks for North America licensing deal, sources say
By Simon Meads and Kate Holton
LONDON, March 22 (Reuters) - EMI Group [LNDONE.UL] is talking to rivals about licensing its music in North America but could fall foul of a requirement that Citigroup (C.N) approves any deal, sources familiar with the situation said.
EMI, owned by Guy Hands' buyout house Terra Firma [TERA.UL], has been talking to Universal (VIV.PA), and a couple of other unnamed parties, about leasing its recorded music in the United States for a period of five years for about 400 million pounds ($597.9 million), one of the sources said. However EMI's U.S. assets form part of Citigroup's security on its 2.6 billion pounds in loans for the business, meaning EMI will need the approval of the U.S. banking giant to push ahead with the sale, a separate source said.
Universal is the world's largest music company, owned by Vivendi, while EMI is currently the fourth largest, and it has always struggled in the United States.
EMI, which recently posted a 1.56 billion pounds full-year loss, is set to fail a test of its banking covenants at the end of March, meaning it has until mid-June to inject money to get the business back within the terms of its debt. [ID:nLDE62F1E1]
Citigroup would not withhold its approval of a deal, should EMI be able to show it was in the music company's best interests. However, should it believe a deal is not in the interests of the wider stakeholder group, it could decide not to approve it, the source added.
Another music industry source who asked not to be named pointed out that an agreement of this sort had not been done before on this scale, and said it would be very difficult to agree in such a short space of time. The industry source pointed out that any agreement for the world's biggest and most influential music market would have to resolve issues such as dealing with royalties, who would provide tour support and antitrust issues. Executives within the industry also questioned the price as it is not clear how much the entire EMI recorded music business would be worth.
At three times historic EBITDA, the recorded music division could be worth around 1 billion pounds, before any discount to peers to reflect its recent loss of some artists. Music industry sources say EMI, which has such artists as the Beatles, Coldplay and Lily Allen, has held talks with lots of groups to discuss its options. Assets that are often touted as possible disposals include EMI Japan or the classics division.
Forrester analyst Mark Mulligan told Reuters any licensing deal would be very complicated but he said the company was under pressure to bring in cash.
He also said that EMI was historically weak in the United States and may be willing to try alternative options there, as opposed to other markets where it is stronger.
(Additional by Yinka Adegoke in New York; Editing by David Cowell)
Monday, March 22, 2010
Monday, March 15, 2010
Online Sales Make Sweet Music
From The Times
March 15, 2010
Alexi Mostrous: Media Editor
"The Promise" by Girls Aloud is one of the most downloaded singles of 2009
The British music industry enjoyed some rare good news yesterday when it was revealed that the growth in digital music royalties had outpaced falling CD sales for the first time last year.
Royalties generated by online music sales grew by 72.7 per cent last year to £30.4 million, as increasing numbers of consumers downloaded music from sites such as Apple’s iTunes. About 16.1 million albums were downloaded in 2009, up 56.1 per cent on the previous year.
PRS for Music, which collects royalties for 65,000 British songwriters, said that the £12.8 million growth in digital music revenue had more than compensated for the £8.7 million loss in royalties from falling CD sales. It announced an overall 2.6 per cent rise in annual revenue in 2009 to £623 million.
Robert Ashcroft, chief executive of PRS, said: “2009 was the first year in which the growth in revenues from the legal digital market compensated for the decline in revenues from traditional CDs and DVDs, though we remain cautious as to whether this represents a true turning point. “The next decade does, however, promise further growth in earnings from the legal digital market as well as the use of British music overseas.”
Last year, sales of music singles — which are mostly sold digitally — overtook album sales in Britain for the first time. More than 150 million singles were sold in 2009, up from 115 million in 2008, according to figures published in January by the BPI. In contrast, album sales fell from 134 million to 129 million over the same period. Singles provide record labels with as little as 7 per cent of the revenue generated by album sales.
March 15, 2010
Alexi Mostrous: Media Editor
"The Promise" by Girls Aloud is one of the most downloaded singles of 2009
The British music industry enjoyed some rare good news yesterday when it was revealed that the growth in digital music royalties had outpaced falling CD sales for the first time last year.
Royalties generated by online music sales grew by 72.7 per cent last year to £30.4 million, as increasing numbers of consumers downloaded music from sites such as Apple’s iTunes. About 16.1 million albums were downloaded in 2009, up 56.1 per cent on the previous year.
PRS for Music, which collects royalties for 65,000 British songwriters, said that the £12.8 million growth in digital music revenue had more than compensated for the £8.7 million loss in royalties from falling CD sales. It announced an overall 2.6 per cent rise in annual revenue in 2009 to £623 million.
Robert Ashcroft, chief executive of PRS, said: “2009 was the first year in which the growth in revenues from the legal digital market compensated for the decline in revenues from traditional CDs and DVDs, though we remain cautious as to whether this represents a true turning point. “The next decade does, however, promise further growth in earnings from the legal digital market as well as the use of British music overseas.”
Last year, sales of music singles — which are mostly sold digitally — overtook album sales in Britain for the first time. More than 150 million singles were sold in 2009, up from 115 million in 2008, according to figures published in January by the BPI. In contrast, album sales fell from 134 million to 129 million over the same period. Singles provide record labels with as little as 7 per cent of the revenue generated by album sales.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
IFPI Report: How Much Are Labels Investing in Music?
March 9, 2010 (reprint)
A new report from the IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry) breaks down how much the music industry spends annually investing in their artists. According to the IFPI's data, approximately $5 billion is "invested" in artist rosters, with 30 percent of the labels' revenue spent on artist development and marketing. This includes approximately 16 percent of sales revenue going to A&R, which the IFPI says "exceeds the proportionate research and development expenditure of virtually all other industries."
The IFPI breaks down the costs in "breaking" a new artist, figuring that it takes approximately $1 million to do so in the U.S. and U.K. The breakdown includes the artist's advance, recording, filming three videos, tour support and promotion/marketing.
John Kennedy, IFPI Chairman/CEO says, "Investing in music is the core mission of record companies. No other party can lay claim to a comparable role in the music sector. No other party comes close to the levels of investment committed by record companies to developing, nurturing and promoting talent."
He continues, "One of the biggest myths about the music industry in the digital age is that artists no longer need record labels. It is simply wrong. The investment, partnership and support that help build artist careers have never been more important than they are today. This report aims to explain why. Investing in Music is about how the music business works. It explains the value that music companies add, helping artists to realise a talent that would typically go unrecognised and get to an audience they would otherwise not reach."
"Much of the value added by music companies is invisible to the outside world. Yet it is the investment and advice from labels that enable an artist to build a career in music and which, in turn, creates a beneficial ripple effect throughout the wider music sector."
The report can be found here via the IFPI website.
A new report from the IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry) breaks down how much the music industry spends annually investing in their artists. According to the IFPI's data, approximately $5 billion is "invested" in artist rosters, with 30 percent of the labels' revenue spent on artist development and marketing. This includes approximately 16 percent of sales revenue going to A&R, which the IFPI says "exceeds the proportionate research and development expenditure of virtually all other industries."
The IFPI breaks down the costs in "breaking" a new artist, figuring that it takes approximately $1 million to do so in the U.S. and U.K. The breakdown includes the artist's advance, recording, filming three videos, tour support and promotion/marketing.
John Kennedy, IFPI Chairman/CEO says, "Investing in music is the core mission of record companies. No other party can lay claim to a comparable role in the music sector. No other party comes close to the levels of investment committed by record companies to developing, nurturing and promoting talent."
He continues, "One of the biggest myths about the music industry in the digital age is that artists no longer need record labels. It is simply wrong. The investment, partnership and support that help build artist careers have never been more important than they are today. This report aims to explain why. Investing in Music is about how the music business works. It explains the value that music companies add, helping artists to realise a talent that would typically go unrecognised and get to an audience they would otherwise not reach."
"Much of the value added by music companies is invisible to the outside world. Yet it is the investment and advice from labels that enable an artist to build a career in music and which, in turn, creates a beneficial ripple effect throughout the wider music sector."
The report can be found here via the IFPI website.
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