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Sony Buys Michael Jackson's Remaining Stake in EMI Music Publishing for Full Ownership

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In announcing its financial results, the Sony Corp. revealed that it had acquired Michael Jackson’s estate share of EMI Music Publishing, paying it a total of $287.5 million.

That was apparently the first step in completing its pending acquisition of EMI Music Publishing from a consortium of investors, which still has to be vetted by governmental regulatory agencies before the deal can proceed. Sony is still in the process of filing the paper work for the proposed acquisition, according to sources, so the process of scrutinizing the deals impact on potential anti-trust issues has yet to begin, they say.

As it is, Sony has agreed to pay $2.3 billion to acquire EMI, as well as assume EMI’s debt of $1.359 billion. With Sony and Jackson’s share valued at $1.091 billion that gives EMI Music Publishing a valuation of $4.75 billion.

The Jackson estate held a 9.84% interest in EMI; or a 25.1% stake of the piece owned by Sony and the Jackson estate, which means that without putting up any money in the deal, by virtue of its stake in Sony/ATV, the Jackson estate received $287.5 million, not a bad return on a zero dollar investment.

Prior to this deal and before EMI Music Publishing came up for sale, the Jackson estate had sold its 50 percent share of Sony/ATV in 2016 and received $750 million in cash, which means that the Jackson estate has made over $1 billion since it has unwound its interest in those publishing assets.

While the Jackson estate, advised by Shot Tower Capitol, is overseen by two co-executors -- music industry executive John McClain and lawyer John Branca -- it is the latter, a partner in the law firm of Ziffren Brittenham LLP, who likely gets credit for making the shrewd publishing deals on behalf of the estate.

When Sony completes its acquisition -- if it gets the regulatory approval that is; the buyout of the Jackson estate didn't require it but the buyout of the other 60 percent does -- EMI Music Publishing will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corp, and will likely be legally merged into Sony/ATV, as it functionally already is.

https://www.billboard.com/articles/...el-jackson-estates-share-emi-music-publishing

<a href="https://ibb.co/d4PzJz"><img src="https://preview.ibb.co/fkhVQe/Sony_Estate.jpg" alt="Sony_Estate" border="0"></a><br /><a target='_blank' href='https://poetandpoem.com/sick'>sick poems</a><br />

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Sony Music released their Q1 earnings today, which revealed its acquisition of the Michael Jackson estate&#8217;s 21.5% share of EMI Music Publishing, leading to full ownership of the company.


Sony paid $287.5 million for the remaining share of EMI, Billboard reports.

The complete acquisition of EMI for a total of $2.3 billion was put into motion this May and led by private equity firm Mubadala, according to Variety. Sony has agreed to acquire EMI&#8217;s $1.4 billion in debt in the deal. Before it can be finalized, the acquisition has to be vetted by regulatory agencies. If the deal is approved, EMI will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corp.

This is a step in the right direction for Sony CEO and president Kenichiro Yoshida, who said this year that he would like the company to play a bigger part in the global music business.

Other points of note in Sony Music&#8217;s Q1 earnings include a 30% bump in streaming revenues, a 30% decrease in physical product sales, and an 8% improvement in total revenue, likely due to visual media and platform sales. Camila Cabello, Pink, Calvin Harris, and Dave Matthews Band were some of Sony&#8217;s top performers of the quarter.

http://fortune.com/2018/07/31/sony-michael-jackson-emi-stake/

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Sony Music&#8217;s Q1 earnings point to a performance in line with industry trends when it comes to streaming (revenues up 37%) and physical product sales (down 30%). Overall, Sony&#8217;s music division enjoyed an 8% or JPY12.9 billion improvement in revenue in the quarter ending June 30, reflecting stronger visual media and platform sales, including the successful mobile game app &#8220;Fate/Grand Order&#8221; (the Music segment, which provided a 38% return on investment capital, includes recorded music, music publishing and visual media and platform).

Operating income for the Music division was up JPY32.1 billion from JPY25 billion in Q1 of 2017. The biggest decline came from physical sales, which dropped from JPY33 million to JPY22 million year-on-year. Download sales saw a slight dip, too, from JPY12.9 million to JPY10.6 million, but digital&#8217;s performance overall was offset by a rise in streaming, from JPY38.4 million to JPY51.6 million.

Also detailed in the earnings report is Sony Corp.&#8217;s completed acquisition of EMI Music Publishing from a consortium led by private equity firm Mubadala. Sony&#8217;s purchase of 60% equity interest in EMI has a price tag of $2.3 billion dollars and was put into motion in May. In July, Sony Corp. acquired the remaining 25.1% stake from the Estate of Michael Jackson for $287.5 million, making EMI a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony. (It should be noted that Sony/ATV Music Publishing chairman Martin Bandier built EMI into a powerhouse publisher and ran the company from 1991 until 2005.)

Top Sony Music sellers for the quarter included Camila Cabello&#8217;s &#8220;Camila&#8221; album, Pink&#8217;s &#8220;Beautiful Trauma,&#8221; as well as the latest from Dave Matthews Band, Calvin Harris, Luke Combs and George Ezra. Japan, which operates as its own SMEJ division, drove much of recorded music&#8217;s overall momentum with three of the top 10 sellers. Looking ahead to future &#8220;noteworthy&#8221; projects due out before Sept. 30, the report lists new music by Barbra Streisand and Vampire Weekend.

Recently installed Sony president and CEO Kenichiro Yoshida noted that the company wants a bigger piece of the global music business.

https://variety.com/2018/music/news...aining-stake-emi-music-publishing-1202890744/
 
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Just imagine all the greatest hits packages they can put out now!!
 
So another (admittedly very large) short-term cash injection for the MJ Estate, but at the expense of long term income. I'm not expert but this move seems flawed to me. Why exactly did they feel the need to sell this asset? I doubt it's because they need the cash - the MJ Estate was valued at around $500million in 2016.

Fair enough, they didn't really have much choice when it came to the Sony/ATV catalogue. The clause was triggered and the deal needed to be done. But I can't get my head around this sale.

If I had my cynical hat on i'd say it's because the executors get a big chunk of the income they generate NOW while they're in charge, so they took the chance to cash in when it was offered. When the estate is out of probate they won't benefit from the long-term income keeping a share in EMI would generate! Is the MJ Estate coming out of probate any time soon?
 
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MJ died trying to secure these assets and all they've done is liquidise them and sell to their employer [Branca is Sony lawyer]. $$$$

To think these were the same people who valued MJs image and likeness at 2,105 dollars. This is so unbelievably fishy and right in-front of our eyes it really is unfathomable.
 
dam2040 said:
MJ died trying to secure these assets and all they've done is liquidise them and sell to their employer [Branca is Sony lawyer]. $$$$

To think these were the same people who valued MJs image and likeness at 2,105 dollars. This is so unbelievably fishy and right in-front of our eyes it really is unfathomable.
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The stake in EMI Publishing was NOT an asset when Michael was alive. It was acquired as an asset by the Estate, as part of its partnership with Sony, when Sony took over EMI in 2012. The Sony/ATV catalogue buyout did not include the EMI publishing component. So now, the Executors have managed to turn the Estate's 9.8% share of EMI Publishing into a sizeable profit, without really having to do anything at all. It's excellent business and will provide funds to assist with the IRS and Thome cases (the cost of which is still to be determined). The main objectives for the Executors of any Estate are to generate income and clear debt. The Executors of the MJ Estate have done an excellent job of both of those objectives.
 
Mikky Dee said:
The stake in EMI Publishing was NOT an asset when Michael was alive. It was acquired as an asset by the Estate, as part of its partnership with Sony, when Sony took over EMI in 2012. The Sony/ATV catalogue buyout did not include the EMI publishing component. So now, the Executors have managed to turn the Estate's 9.8% share of EMI Publishing into a sizeable profit, without really having to do anything at all. It's excellent business and will provide funds to assist with the IRS and Thome cases (the cost of which is still to be determined). The main objectives for the Executors of any Estate are to generate income and clear debt. The Executors of the MJ Estate have done an excellent job of both of those objectives.
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They should be praised for generating income for their own tax fraud?
 
Mikky Dee said:
The Executors of the MJ Estate have done an excellent job of both of those objectives.
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The MJ Estate 'inherited' a great debt when MJ died and some of their projects have been very lucrative. They should be congratulated on the success of some of their ventures. Others have been managed less well and they've missed obvious opportunities.
They cleared their remaining debt when they sold their share of Sony/ATV didn't they?
Assuming that's true then I'd have thought the best objective right now would be to ensure a generous long-term income from their existing assets, rather than to arrange a short-term cash injection. Perhaps they have a planned business use for that money that will generate a higher, more secure income for many years to come than their stake in EMI, but I doubt it. It's a lot of money.
 
dam2040 said:
They should be praised for generating income for their own tax fraud?
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What are you talking about? The trial with the IRS is about the valuation of Michaels image/likness, acess in time of Michaels death.
Do you think the Estate should have paid 1 billion to the IRS after Michaels death. Then they sure had to sell not only Sony/AtV but also MIJAC immediately after Michaels death just to satisfy the outrages IRS and sure Michaels kids would get nothing but debts.
 
Annita said:
What are you talking about? The trial with the IRS is about the valuation of Michaels image/likness, acess in time of Michaels death.
Do you think the Estate should have paid 1 billion to the IRS after Michaels death. Then they sure had to sell not only Sony/AtV but also MIJAC immediately after Michaels death just to satisfy the outrages IRS and sure Michaels kids would get nothing but debts.
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The MJ estate lied to the IRS about MJ and are now in trouble for it. No praise for me. In fact, that document did nothing but slate MJ even saying he 'deserved' his tabloid nicknames.
 
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