More and more Hollywood studios are concealing their box office grosses amid the pandemic and ongoing theater closures, saying they don’t want to be unfairly judged for numbers that, in ‘normal’ times, would be considered anywhere from tepid to abysmal.
Source: More Hollywood Studios Start to Conceal Box Office Grosses
Source: Roku’s Revenue Surges 58% on Pandemic-Fueled Streaming Boom
Sound Hill will be overseen by Robert Brenner, Manager of Royalty Services and Label Operations at Round Hill. His team will be responsible for ensuring each artist’s repertoire is registered accurately with neighboring rights societies worldwide, tracking international income, and optimizing data.
Source: Round Hill launches Sound Hill Neighboring Rights division
Traditionally, songwriters have been reluctant to sell their publishing rights, which are often a source of personal pride as well as a revenue stream that can outlive them. That’s changing as the market heats up, tax advantages loom and touring could be stalled for some time, while music catalogs are reconsidered as not just a collection of artistic works but also as a collection of monetary assets and revenue streams.
Source: Star Track, The Next Generation: What Do Major Catalog Sales Mean For Younger Artists?
A report from investment manager Stifel – since blasted as “naive” by Mercuriadis – last month questioned the way in which the value of Hipgnosis’ acquired assets are written up after periodic NAV (Net Asset Value) re-assessments from independent valuer Massarsky. Meanwhile, possibly briefed by Hipgnosis competitors, some of the business pages of the UK’s media are becoming increasingly hostile.
Source: Merck Mercuriadis faces the future… and stares down his critics
iHeartMedia has entered into an agreement with The E.W. Scripps Company to acquire Triton Digital for $230 million. Operating in more than 50 countries, Triton Digital is an Advertising Technology SaaS platform for audio streaming, podcasting and metrics that enables publishers to monetize their audiences.
Source: Another giant podcast buy: iHeartMedia acquires Triton Digital for $230m
Disney alums Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs are in the early stages of shopping for content companies to roll up into a larger operating company with backing from private equity giant Blackstone. High on the pair’s wish list is Scooter Braun’s media and management firm SB Projects.
Source: Kevin Mayer, Tom Staggs Eye Rollup of Content Firms Including Scooter Braun’s SB Projects
The Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) has officially received $424 million worth of unpaid royalties from digital platforms including Spotify, YouTube, and Apple Music. A total of 20 digital service providers (DSPs) have transferred unclaimed payments to the MLC “to seek the MMA’s [Music Modernization Act’s] limitation on liability for past infringement,” the organization said.
Source: Mechanical Licensing Collective Receives $424 Million in Unpaid Royalties
Pex states that the new investment will help it to scale its Attribution Engine (AE), which the company describes as “the licensing infrastructure for a better Internet”. According to a press statement: “AE creates a single marketplace for digital content, transforming how creators, rightsholders and platforms do business together by enabling fair compensation and increased access to copyrighted content”.
Source: Licensing platform Pex secures $57m investment from Tencent, Tencent Music Entertainment and others
Lawyers for a potential class of e-book consumers have asked a federal judge to consolidate four cases alleging an e-book price-fixing conspiracy among Amazon and the Big Five publishers. In a letter and proposed order filed with the court late last week, attorneys for the proposed consolidated consumer class asked judge Gregory H. Woods to join the cases and to set a new schedule.
Source: Amazon E-book Case Sprawls, Lawyers Propose Consolidation