Welcome to Music Enterprise Worldwide’s weekly round-up – the place we ensure that 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 cut back their touring prices.
This week, UK-listed Hipgnosis Songs Fund (HSF) issued a proposal to its shareholders to promote 29 catalogs from its portfolio for USD $440 million to a different Hipgnosis fund – the non-public, Blackstone-backed Hipgnosis Songs Capital (HSC).
Hipgnosis Songs Fund’s major motivation for promoting the 29 catalogs to HSC, in response to an announcement to traders on Thursday (September 14), is that it’ll act “as a catalyst for a re-rating of [HSF’s] share value”.
Additionally this week, Paris-headquartered Imagine applauded Deezer‘s new ‘artist-centric’ streaming mannequin created in tandem with Common Music Group, however questioned the mannequin’s affect on “rising artists”.
Elsewhere, impartial music distributor DistroKid acquired web site internet hosting firm Bandzoogle, which gives varied e-commerce instruments for musicians.
Plus, a household feud is enjoying out over the rights to the works of Motown songwriter and producer Ron Miller, whereas tune royalties buying and selling platform JKBX is now formally stay.
Right here’s what occurred this week…
1) HIPGNOSIS’ BLACKSTONE FUND SET TO SPEND $440M BUYING 29 CATALOGS FROM HIPGNOSIS’ UK-LISTED FUND; COMPETITORS HAVE 40 DAYS TO TRY AND OUTBID ITS OFFER.
As predicted by MBW earlier this 12 months, UK-listed Hipgnosis Songs Fund (HSF) has issued its shareholders a proposal to promote 29 catalogs from its portfolio for USD $440 million to a different Hipgnosis fund – the non-public, Blackstone-backed Hipgnosis Songs Capital (HSC).
In an announcement to its traders this morning, Hipgnosis Songs Fund (aka HSF, aka SONG) makes no bones about one in every of its major motivations for promoting the 29 catalogs to HSC: That it’ll act “as a catalyst for a re-rating of [HSF’s] share value”.
If the proposed $440 million sale is accomplished, Hipgnosis Songs Fund says it will stay the proprietor of 81% of its present portfolio by Truthful Worth, with an elevated concentrate on older vintages.
Hipgnosis Songs Fund would retain possession of seven of its ten largest catalogs post-the deal, says the corporate.
Hipgnosis Songs Fund has additionally proposed to its shareholders that it promote a second portfolio of catalogs – incorporating 20,000 ‘non-core’ songs – this time to not Hipgnosis Songs Capital, however to a 3rd occasion on the non-public market.
The proposed value for this transaction is USD $25 million, taking the complete quantity of catalog gross sales proposed by HSF this week to $465 million…
2) BELIEVE APPLAUDS DEEZER’S ACTION ON ‘NOISE’ – BUT QUESTIONS NEW ‘ARTIST-CENTRIC’ ROYALTY MODEL’S IMPACT ON ‘RISING ARTISTS’
Final week, Deezer introduced the launch of a brand new ‘artist-centric’ streaming mannequin, created in tandem with Common Music Group. The mannequin is designed, in response to Deezer, “to raised reward the artists, and the music that followers worth essentially the most”.
On Monday (September 11), Imagine – like Deezer, a Paris-headquartered firm – issued its response to the information.
Imagine expressed some applause for the mannequin – but additionally expressed some issues…
3) DISTROKID ACQUIRES WEBSITE HOSTING AND E-COMMERCE COMPANY BANDZOOGLE
Impartial music distributor DistroKid has acquired web site internet hosting firm Bandzoogle.
Bandzoogle gives varied e-commerce instruments permitting musicians to market and promote merchandise on to their fanbases.
Based on DistroKid, the Bandzoogle acquisition signifies that artists will now be capable to energy digital, bodily and on-demand merch and music gross sales all “inside the DistroKid ecosystem…”
4) JKBX GOES LIVE, FEATURING LISTINGS TO RESERVE SHARES IN ROYALTIES FROM HITS BY BEYONCÉ, ED SHEERAN AND MORE SUPERSTARS
Music royalties buying and selling platform JKBX is formally stay.
The platform’s arrival within the music enterprise has been talked about lots this 12 months, with the corporate saying in a press launch final month that it’s aiming to “change into a transformative pressure in music and investing”.
The JKBX platform, co-founded by CEO Scott Cohen, (co-founder of The Orchard and previously Chief Innovation Officer at Warner Music Group), will provide its customers the power to spend money on Royalty Shares for compositions and sound recordings of hit songs….
5) MOTOWN SONGWRITING LEGEND RON MILLER’S FAMILY IN LEGAL FIGHT OVER ROYALTIES
A dramatic household feud is enjoying out over the rights to the works of Motown songwriter and producer Ron Miller – with a music trade publishing large caught within the center.
Miller, identified finest for co-writing For As soon as In My Life – a observe that grew to become a Sizzling 100 hit for Tony Bennett, a No.2 hit for Stevie Marvel, and was additionally recorded by Diana Ross, Frank Sinatra, The Temptations and others – died in 2007, however his heirs have change into embroiled in an advanced dispute over his royalties.
In 2022, Sony Music Publishing reportedly signed a deal with one in every of Miller’s youngsters, Lisa Daybreak Miller, to manage the rights for 130 of the late songwriter’s compositions.
Now two of Lisa Miller’s half-siblings, additionally youngsters of Ron Miller, allege that she gained management over these copyrights by illegitimate means, and have gone to court docket over the matter.
MBW’s Weekly Spherical-Up is supported by Centtrip, which helps over 500 of the world’s best-selling artists maximise their revenue and cut back their touring prices.Music Enterprise Worldwide
