Finance
is making money by gobbling up the rights to old hits and pumping them back into our present. The result is a markedly blander music scene, as financiers cannibalize the past at the expense of the future and make it even harder for us to build those new artists whose contributions will enrich our entire culture.
Marc Hogan • Same Old Song: Private Equity Is Destroying Our Music Ecosystem
Privae Equity is
the market for music copyrights might actually be more solid than that for housing. So far, on-demand streaming has proved pandemic-proof, and it seems recession-proof, so the only danger would be a collapse of the copyright system — and it’s hard to imagine how that would happen, especially now that the music business survived illegal... See more
Robert Levine • What Does Private Equity Mean for the Music Business Long-Term?
Reasons for optimism: On-demand music streaming has weathered the pandemic, suggesting it can weather other financial crises as well.
An all-out collapse of the copyright system would need to occur for any real damage to be done. The industry has survived other threats to the copyright system ie) illegal reproductions.
Historically, record labels and music publishers could use the royalties from their older hits to underwrite risky bets on unproven talent. But why “would you spend your time trying to create something new at the expense of your catalog?” asked Merck Mercuriadis
Marc Hogan • Same Old Song: Private Equity Is Destroying Our Music Ecosystem
Private equity is an investment class where firms raise capital to acquire and manage private companies or take public companies private, with the goal of ultimately selling them for a profit. These investments typically require significant capital commitments over several years.
Some writers will worry about how the new owner of their songs will treat them, but realistically — and this might sound cold, but it’s also true — that’s something creators need to think about before they sell.
Robert Levine • What Does Private Equity Mean for the Music Business Long-Term?
Writers’ concerns over PE catalogue purchases
HarbourView leads $85m investment in AI-powered kids entertainment company Animaj - Music Business Worldwide
Murray Stassenmusicbusinessworldwide.com
In a secondary buyout, a private equity firm buys a company from another private equity group rather than a listed company. Such deals were assumed to constitute a distress sale but have become more common amid increased specialization by private equity firms.1314 For instance, one firm might buy a company to cut costs before selling it to another... See more
James Chen • Private Equity Explained With Examples and Ways To Invest
Further Questions:
Curious about how we come to certain conclusions about the stability of music copyright cashflow in comparison to mortgages.
AI threats to copyright system - what does this mean for investors? Is this another instance in which their collective power along with publishers, labels, CMOs and other music industry stakeholders can be used to combat threats posed by big tech?
