Sony Music is said to be eager to invest in royalties by buying half of Michael Jackson’s music copyright catalog for $600 million last year and also trading the global rock band Queen. Bloomberg reported on the 29th (local time), citing sources, that Sony Music is negotiating to purchase Queen’s music copyright catalog for a total of $1 billion. Sony Music is expected to set up a separate company to pursue the deal. The Financial Times (FT) reported on the 17th that Sony Music created a company called “Rock Vidco” for the deal on the 17th. According to the U.K. corporate registry website, the co-director of Team Major Sony Music Publishing was listed as the company’s representative. There is a possibility of working with other companies to raise funds, the FT said. The deal is expected to include not only Queen’s music copyright, but also other profits, including merchandise, licenses, and profits from Queen’s biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody.” The U.S. Billboard estimated that Queen’s catalog revenue could reach about $48 million a year on a global basis. With the movie “Bohemian Rhapsody,” which was released in late 2018, becoming a global hit, Queen Productions recorded the highest sales ever worth £72.77 million in fiscal 2019. Queen Productions is the original copyright owner of Queen’s sound source, a company owned by the family of Queen’s band members Freddie Mercury, Brian May, John Deacon and Roger Taylor. Queen has been pushing for the sale of music copyright catalogs for more than a year and has discussed with Sony Music and Universal Music, Bloomberg said, citing sources. Universal Music does not appear to have extended its exclusive negotiating position due to price issues even after the negotiation period ends.
Major foreign media reported that the negotiations are still under discussion, and copyright negotiations with Disney Music Group remain even if the deal is reached. Disney has owned the rights to Queen’s music in North America since 1991. Under U.S. copyright law, Queen can get her copyright back or sign a new contract from 2026, 35 years after selling the copyright. Officials from Queen Productions, Disney Music Group and Sony Music declined to comment to Bloomberg and the FT.
SOPHIA KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
