Record label EMI, which was purchased by Terra Firma Capital Corporation (TII) in 2007, was dealt a serious blow yesterday by the band Pink Floyd. The band filed a lawsuit against EMI because the record company started selling individual music tracks from Pink Floyd's two block buster albums, Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall online. The selling of individual music tracks is expressly forbid by the band's contract with the record label. Yesterday a judge affirmed that contract condition.

This turn of events comes not only as a serious blow to EMI, but as a gut wrenching twist in Terra Firma's continuing downward spiral. Terra Firma is currently engaged in a legal battle with Citigroup, Inc. (C) regarding its purchase of EMI at auction. Terra Firma has accused Citi of the use of "fraudulent measures" in completing that sale.

Continue reading Pink Floyd Sends EMI to the Dark Side of the Moon

Pink Floyd Sends EMI to the Dark Side of the Moon originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 12 Mar 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Household company executive to lead up EMI originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 08 Jul 2008 13:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Independent record label Concord Music Group and Australian-based film company Village Roadshow Pictures Group, part of the media company Village Roadshow Ltd. (OTC: VRLDY), have merged to form Village Roadshow Entertainment Group, reported Billboard early last week. Village Roadshow will own nearly 40% of the new company, while the other majority split between two private equity firms based in New York and Los Angeles. According to Billboard, the two companies "had common owners in that Norman Lear and Hal Gaba's Act III Communications and Tailwind owned Concord; and Act III and Clarity -- through an entity called Crescent Entertainment -- owned 50% of Village Roadshow Pictures group."

The deal is nearly six months old, after being announced on September 3, 2007, and the Act III group paid close to $48 million to command more than 60% of the new company. Both companies will continue to operate as "separate entities, but some backroom functions like human resources and information technology likely will be combined." Additionally, the report indicated that some cross-promotion opportunities are to be expected via the merger of film and music companies.

While this deal and the merger seem logical for the owners and participants involved, the only concern this consumer has about a private equity firm owning a majority stake in a music company is the problems that have plagued London-based EMI since Terra Firma bought out the music giant last summer. Clearly, Concord has enjoyed a positive relationship with its private equity owners for longer and with much more success. Furthermore, the label has gained significant signings in the last year while creating a new label with Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX) to release Paul McCartney's first album after leaving EMI last spring (before the Terra Firma buyout).

Concord Music Group and Village Roadshow merge originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 17 Feb 2008 10:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

EMI makes bid for independent label Chrysalis, despite concerns of late originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 21 Jan 2008 16:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading 'It's All Over Now' - Embattled EMI loses another major act

'It's All Over Now' - Embattled EMI loses another major act originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 17 Jan 2008 16:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

EMI memo divulges new digital plan originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 10 Oct 2007 17:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• It was revealed yesterday that Terra Firma is among the potential bidders for Ford Motor Company's (NYSE: F) Jaguar and Land Rover brands, reported the Financial Times.
• There is a 40% to 45% risk that a recession will be triggered by the housing market downturn in the U.S., the CEO of Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) warned, the Financial Times reported.

• From BusinessWeek's "Inside Wall Street" column:
  
• Investors looking for fast growth in the $110 billion business-enterprise telecom market are betting on Time Warner Telecom (NASDAQ: TWTC), which offers broadband connections for data, high-speed Web access, local voice, and long-distance service.
• Plum Creek Timber (NYSE: PCL) is flying high despite the housing slump and market decline driven by the subprime mortgage crisis.
• Universal Electronics Inc (NASDAQ: UEIC), which makes the remote controls for TVs and other appliances, has caught the Street's eye.

• Unstrung.com reported that Cisco Systems Inc (NASDAQ: CSCO) is close to buying a WiMax base station company, according to sources, and one possible target is Alvarion (NASDAQ: ALVR).
• Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) is reportedly going to reduce the amount of money and effort it spends on premium services related to music, games, TV, and movies, reported TechCrunch.com.

Newspaper wrap-up: Terra Firma interested in Jaguar and Land Rover originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 28 Sep 2007 09:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Over a week ago, the European private equity firm Terra Firma extended the deadline for its offer to buy EMI Group PLC (LSE: EMI) from July 5 to July 12. It was the second extension the firm had made, and this morning a third extension was made until July 19. According to Billboard.com, by 1 p.m. yesterday, just 3.82% of EMI's shares had been sold to Terra Firma. A week ago, that figure was 3.56%.

Yesterday, the European Commission approved the buyout; the regulatory commission found no antitrust issues. At the same time, EMI stocks dropped from the boost they enjoyed last week, falling from 271 pence on Wednesday's closing to close at 268.75 yesterday afternoon. The stock has fared nicely today, but has not risen much more than one pence in trading.

This third extension from Terra Firma comes in the face of continued hopes from EMI shareholders that Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG) will make a counterbid. Billboard.com has also commented that "WMG is reported to have appointed Alan Mnuchin, of Wall Street investment group AGM Partners, to re-assess how to make another counterbid for EMI."

A merger between EMI and WMG might be beneficial for shareholders, but consumers of music from both companies may not be as happy. EMI dropped the use of Digital Rights Management technology in April, paving the way for higher quality downloads from online stores like Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL)'s iTunes Store and a future Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) store. WMG has remained firm in its support for DRM use. A combination of the two may result in the reversal of DRM-free use of EMI's products.

EMI shareholders slow to sell out originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 13 Jul 2007 16:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Regulators OK EMI buyout; shareholders sing another tune originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 12 Jul 2007 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Billboard report indicated that Terra Firma had already received 3.53% of issued shares by the time the offer's deadline on June 28 passed. After two extensions, that amount has increased only 0.03%. The report also maintains that a spokesman indicated the firm would be willing to continue extensions until July 26 and that it is possible many shareholders are waiting for a higher counter bid from Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG). WMG has been rumored since the Terra Firma buyout announcement was made to be preparing for an offer, even though EMI and WMG have flirted with joining for over seven years.

Stockholders may be hopeful for a bid from WMG, but the combination of these two music labels could be an unwanted and unfortunate move for the record industry. Both labels are committed to different and opposing growth models for the industry -- the most important and largest being the place of Digital Rights Management technology, something WMG is devoted to using. EMI dropped DRM use from its tracks in April and launched Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL)'s new iTunes Plus in May, the first of numerous DRM-free services.

Terra Firma bid for EMI extended ... again originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 06 Jul 2007 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Despite an announcement early last week that EMI Group PLC had entered negotiations with the European private equity firm Terra Firma about a buyout, reports now indicate the Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG) and several other potential buyers intend to make bids for the British music company. According to Forbes.com, the offer from Terra Firma is five pence higher than the most recent bid from Warner, which was 260 pence in February. A year ago, Warner offered EMI a bid of 320 pence per share, which was rejected. Terra Firma is also still seeing competition from other private equity firms, like New York-based Cerberus Capital Management.

Reportedly the deal with Terra Firma is being considered heavily because it carries the least regulatory difficulties from the European Commission concerning the creation of a monopoly. Since 2000, the repeated negotiations between EMI and Warner have hit a roadblock because of those fears. Last week's announcement also carried the indication that the Terra Firma bid was more "attractive" in the eyes of the Commission. In addition to Warner's new bidding intentions, former EMI CEO Jim Fifield also made an announcement he intends to bid 278 pence a share for his former company, with backing from the Qatari royal family and Geneva-based private equity firm Corvus Capital, even though they announced no further interest last Wednesday.

EMI has been struggling all year, despite growth since their announcement to ditch Digital Rights Management technology, with lower profits than 2006. On Friday, the stock closed at 275.75 pence, up more since the Terra Firma announcement (but only 3 pence below Fifield's apparent bid). Today it has continued that rise, with figures as high as 277 reported. Warner Music has also enjoyed a slight growth since last week. The stock closed on Thursday at 16.38, and rose to 16.48 on Friday. If the company hopes to make a serious and challenging bid to counter the already agreed upon Terra Firma bid, Warner will have to up the ante significantly.

Bids for EMI stock up despite buyout annoucement originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 29 May 2007 20:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.