Out with the old, in with the numbers: 2011 music sales, Sycotic income, into Oblivion, Vice valuation & more
$32 million later, into the oblivion
+1%: Not that 1 percent, this is the predicted lift in music sales for 2011 from the previous year. The tally isn’t totally complete, but according to reports, thanks in large part to Adele and Lady Gaga, last year was the first time in many that overall sales haven’t slid from the year prior.
-5.6%: The decline in UK music sales despite strong growth in digital and the record-busting sales from British native Adele, meanwhile retail chain HMV continues to struggle to stay afloat.
$42 million: What Simon Cowell reportedly made last year via his joint-venture with Sony for his various entertainment properties.
$20 million: The predicted income this year for Cee Lo Green, as the former Goodie Mob member and “Crazy” crooner’s brand continues to expand under the guidance Primary Wave Management.
1/307: Following the acquisition of Napster, 1 out of every 307 Americans are apparently now paying for Rhapsody, who has also now reached 1 millions subscribers in the U.S. Read the how and why on Evolver.fm.
$87 million: How much was invested in Beyond Oblivion, a music start-up with backing from the Wellcome Foundation, Allen & Co. and News Corp. that never got off the ground. It was announced last week that Boinc, who was taking another stab at the music-hardware bundling model, was closing its doors without ever opening them. AllThingsD’s Peter Kafka reports that investors really only lost $32 million, as the rest was contingent upon hitting certain benchmarks.
$1 billion: What Vice Media could be worth if it maintains its current trajectory. Under the leadership of CEO Tom Freston, of MTV fame, the company has grown to more than 800 full-time employees in 34 countries producing video, books, magazines, live events and music in partnership with some of the world’s biggest companies, including Google, Time Warner and a new JV with Warner Bros. Records.
$12.6 million: How much artists have brought in via music and merch sales through Bandcamp.
07.21.11More Exec Shuffling at Sony Music; Gatfield Named Head of U.K. & Rhone Rumored to Revive Portrait
Sylvia Rhone reviving label at Sony?
A number of high-level executive moves at the changing Sony Music structure have shaken out this week, the first on the job for new CEO Doug Morris. We tipped the hotly pursued deal with hit producer/songwriter Dr. Luke for an expanded label mimicking Interscope last week, while this week began with the official naming of Antonio L.A. Reid as CEO and chairman of Epic Records, news that was widely reported in the previous weeks. Assigning of current acts on the Sony roster to Reid’s new domain has already begun, along with new signings underway – it’s also expected that contestants from the X-Factor series will be developed by Epic – Reid is serving as a judge on the American version of the show. On the international front, which is said to be a major focus for Morris, came the revelation yesterday that Nick Gatfield will be taking over Sony’s U.K. operations, replacing outgoing CEO Ged Doherty. Gatfield previously served as head of Universal’s Island Records U.K. from 2001 to 2008 and held an international A&R executive title at EMI until leaving last year. The move to replace Doherty is being deemed as sudden by some, however it seems more likely that Morris was pulling strings well before officially taking his new title. After departing EMI in 2010 toward the end of the troublesome Guy Hands era, Gatfield was believed to likely end up back in the Universal Music fold, under the incoming CEO Lucian Grainge, whom he worked closely with at Island, however it never came to pass. He was also said to have been in talks with Sony late last summer, but a deal was never reached. Then back in February of this year, Gatfield was hired on at Sony U.K. with the somewhat vague title of President/New Music, reporting to Doherty, who he has now replaced. Richard Sanders, the head of Sony Music Interational based in New York, is also out… According to reports, one of the main functions for Gatfield in his new role, will be to maintain relationships with Simon Cowell and his operations under Syco, which Sony owns a 50% stake in… An abutting storyline to the current UMG and Sony rivalry that has some observers intrigued, is the lawsuit filed this week involving a dispute between American Idol’s Simon Fuller and Simon Cowell over the new U.S. X-Factor series – the shows are aligned with Universal Music and Sony Music respectively… And the latest rumor according to a story in Page Six this morning, is that departed Universal Motown prexy Sylvia Rhone will be relaunching the Portrait Records label at Sony. According to the report, the label will work closely with L.A. Reid’s Epic, and Cyndi Lauper, who was on Portrait in the 80’s, will be the first artist signed to the revived imprint… Stay tuned.
| Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday Bits & Pieces: Sony Music, Apple + EMI, A MySpace without Google & More…
“We had to change the stretch limo culture that prevailed in many areas of the music industry,” says Schmidt-Holtz
A Sunday piece in the New York Times takes a look at Sony Music and its head Rolf Schmidt-Holt. Much of the article examines Sony Music’s moves into territory outside of the traditional music industry, including its partnership with Simon Cowell and a consulting relationship with the government of Argentina… The other apple, Apple Records, announced a new partnership with EMI for the digital release of fifteen remastered albums from artists including Badfinger and James Taylor, though it doesn’t appear that any Beatles releases will be included… MySpace’s lucrative ad-deal with Google is just about up, and while the Wall Street Journal recently reported on News Corp.’s shopping of a new partnership, TechCrunch asks some crucial unaddressed questions… And if you thought those Jonas Bros. albums you bought in the privacy of your home would go unnoticed, think again. In a move to further propel its new iAd platform and compete with Google, Apple is mining data from billions of iTunes downloads to study user’s buying habits…
| Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
| Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »