Report: Sony Music acquires Pink Floyd catalogue | Labels

Sony Music has reportedly acquired the Pink Floyd recordings catalogue for around $400 million.

The deal was reported by the Financial Times, citing sources familiar with the agreement. 

It comes amid a boom in sales for music rights. Although that might have peaked a few years ago, the demand is still there from investors for high-class music assets.

Asset manager Apollo recently provided a $700 million capital solution to Sony Music Group for investments in the sector.

Pink Floyd’s catalogue sale follows significant deals agreed by Sony for artists including Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon and Queen. 

The Pink Floyd valuation would have been much higher had it included song copyrights. According to the FT, the terms of the deal do include the band name and artists’ likeness, which means that Sony Music Will have the rights to merchandise and spin-offs such as films and TV series.

Although never a singles band (with the exception of the chart-topping Another Brick In The Wall Pt 2 in the UK), Pink Floyd have amassed huge streaming consumption in addition to physical sales. They have 18 million monthly listeners on Spotify, where Another Brick In The Wall Pt 2 is approaching a billion streams.

The band’s catalogue includes perennial albums such as The Dark Side Of The Moon, Wish You Were Here and The Wall, which are currently released by Warner Music’s Rhino catalogue division in Europe and Sony’s Legacy Recordings in the US and other international markets. 

A remastered edition of The Dark Side Of The Moon was released last year to mark its 50th anniversary. It is certified 15 times platinum in the UK for consumption in excess of 4.5 million units.

The Pink Floyd acquisition has reportedly been delayed by two years because of disputes between band members. 

David Gilmour hit No.1 last month with solo album Luck And Strange, released via Sony Music Commercial Group.

Music Week has requested comment from Pink Floyd’s management. Sony Music declined to comment.

PHOTO CREDIT: Hipgnosis/Pink Floyd Music for 50th anniversary of Dark Side Of The Moon reissue

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