In the music industry’s current climate there may be no more valuable commodity than publishing rights. As record sales dwindle, and streams continue to pay out paltry sums, one tried and true method of capitalizing on a hit song is by selling the publishing. Whether it’s to a movie studio for the rights to use the song in a movie, or various companies to use the track in advertisements or the like, publishing remains a lucrative and long term revenue stream for artists and record labels. Now, seemingly out of nowhere a company holding onto some of the most valuable publishing rights around is up for sale, and while it might cost a fortune it also may be worth the purchase.
Billboard reports SONGS Music Publishing has hired LionTree Advisors to shop the company around and potentially oversee a nine-figure sale of the indie publishing giant. SONGS touts big names like The Weeknd, Lorde and Diplo as clients, and is seeking upwards of $160 million according to the report. Apparently, the company recently received a buyout offer and instead of accepting the deal initially, they instead decided to shop the company around and see what it could fetch on the open market. Billboard speculates that Warner or Sony made the initial buyout offer, and that SONGS “could command top dollar” on the open market after profiting over $8 million last year. The company is projected to clear $12 million this year, which would continue the upward trend of their last three years. SONGS CEO Matt Pincus declined Billboard’s request for a statement.
