A deal that could upset the universe of world music. Sony rises to 90% of the shares of Emi Music Publishing for 1,9 billion dollars, securing an endless catalog ranging from the timeless Queen to rapper Kanye West.
Kenichiro Yoshida, CEO of Sony, said that “iThe music business has enjoyed an upswing over the past two years, driven in large part by the rise of subscription-based paid streaming services. I believe this acquisition will be an especially significant milestone for our long-term growth.”
Going into detail, Sony announced today that it has reached an agreement with Mubadala Investment, to acquire its stake in EMI Music Publishing. In percentage terms, the US giant already holds a minority stake in the company equal to 30%. By buying 60% of the capital from Mubadala, he therefore rises to 90% of the record company, acquiring de facto direct control. The remaining 10% remains owned by what is left of Michael Jackson's musical and legal empire.
Emi Music is the second largest record company in the world with over $660 million in sales. His catalog (with over 2 million tracks) includes not only Queen, but also Pharell Williams, Kanye West, Pink and Drake.
By "conquering" these artists, Sony thus expands its already immense catalog which among its 2,3 million titles also includes the Beatles.
But in addition to the honors there will also be burdens. Sony will take over the gross debt of Emi Music Publishing which amounts to 1,359 billion dollars as of March 31, an aspect that seems to have been little appreciated by investors on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, where the stock lost almost 2%.
