Publishing

1. Merlin Hires Roger Gold as US Commercial and Strategic Advisor

   October 07, 2013 5:14 PM EDT Merlin, the global rights agency for the independent label sector, has hired former Warner Music Group executive Roger Gold to assist commercial and licensing activities in the United States. The recorded music rights represented by Merlin accou ...

2. Country Music Association Awards 2013 Voter Guide (PDF)

   October 03, 2013 12:00 PM EDT Country Music Association members will receive their third and final CMA Awards ballot on October 10 and will have until Oct. 28 to fill it out. The final results will be revealed during the airing of the 47th annual CMA Awards  -- "Country ...

3. Warner/Chappell, Coca-Cola, E! Partner for Latin Teen TV and Online Series (Exclusive)

   October 03, 2013 8:00 AM EDT Warner/Chappell Latin America has partnered with E! and Coca-Cola to produce a music-themed teen series that will air throughout Latin America beginning in the end of November. “Wake Up With No Make Up!” will be shown online on Coca-Cola TV and ...

4. ASCAP Names John Titta EVP of Creative Services

   October 02, 2013 5:43 PM EDT ASCAP has appointed John Titta executive VP of creative services. In his new role, Titta will be responsible for ASCAP’s membership creative services staff in all genres and oversee operations of the organization’s membership offices in Los Ange ...

5. Publishing Briefs: Lou Reed Re-Ups Admin with Sony/ATV, the Weeknd Signs with SONGS, Bicycle Buys MPCA

   October 02, 2013 1:26 PM EDT --- In completing its one-hundredth transaction, Bicycle Music and its affiliates have acquired the Music Publishing Company of America , which includes in its catalogs songs by Robert Johnson, Sammy Cahn, Richie Sambora, Todd Rungren and Donova ...

6. New Signings: Warner Music Nabs Ylvis, WME Inks Leah Turner, Maximum Artist Adds Lalah Hathaway, Warner/Chappell Signs Danny Orton

   October 02, 2013 7:45 AM EDT Here’s a look at the latest artist signings across the music industry. Billboard.biz is interested in your company’s new signings. Please send announcements to Mitchell.Peters@billboard.com for inclusion in our regular report. Click here for the ...

7. Polly Anthony Remembrances: Jimmy Iovine, Michele Anthony, Doug Morris, Celine Dion, Shakira, Macy Gray, More Pay Tribute

   October 01, 2013 1:30 AM EDT The loss of Polly Anthony this week impacted a large swath of the music industry who responded in droves to the loss of a beloved music executive who helped guide the careers of many successful artists (including, Macy Gray, Shakira, Celine Dio ...

8. ATM Artists Expands to L.A., Hires Zandi, Nasseri, Linck

   September 27, 2013 7:00 AM EDT EDM mega-manager Amy Thomson has expanded her ATM Artists to L.A., and welcomed three new team members, Billboard has learned. Joining the company’s new L.A. office are Zee Zandi, a veteran of the Las Vegas nightlife business; Nima Nasseri, a da ...

9. Nirvana’s ‘In Utero’ Turns 20: Ex-Geffen Execs' Remembrances, Anecdotes, Marketing Strategy (How 'Rape Me' Became 'Waif Me')

   September 24, 2013 12:43 PM EDT Nirvana had much to live up to following the release of its groundbreaking 1991 album, “Nevermind.” But, with the weight of the world on them, the grunge trio surprised (and perhaps alienated) many with its raucous and emotionally raw follow-u ...

10. Epic Records Names Shalik Berry VP of A&R

    September 20, 2013 9:32 PM EDT Shalik Berry has joined Epic as VP of A&R, Billboard has learned. In his new role, the Los Angeles-based Berry will focus on urban music and report to Epic chairman/CEO L.A. Reid. Billboard Power 100: Antonio "L.A." Reid Berry is c ...

11. Record Companies Allowed to Pursue Vimeo for Copyright Infringement

    September 20, 2013 12:15 PM EDT A federal judge in New York won't allow user-generated video website Vimeo, owned by Barry Diller's IAC, to dodge a big copyright lawsuit. Capitol Records and other big labels brought the legal action in December, 2009, alleging that ...

12. Pandora/ASCAP Ruling: Judge to Sony/ATV, UMPG, Others – You’re Either 'All In' or 'All Out' (Analysis)

    September 18, 2013 12:32 PM EDT The ruling by the ASCAP rate court handed down on late Sept. 17 says the performance rights organization blanket license must include all of its repertoire, including the songs of the publishers trying to withdraw the digital rights. But the ...

13. Diarmuid Quinn, Former Top Exec at Warner Bros & Reprise, Joins Kobalt Label Services

    September 18, 2013 5:44 AM EDT Veteran music biz executive Diarmuid Quinn has joined Kobalt Label Services (KLS) in the role as president, North America. Quinn’s tasks include leading and staffing-up Kobalt’s expanding label services operations in the U.S., signing artists fo ...

14. Betty Who Signs To RCA As Marriage Proposal Video Goes Viral (Exclusive)

    September 17, 2013 1:30 PM EDT 1 1.554 k 26 2 0 Betty Who, the Australian-born, New York-based pop singer, who released her debut EP "The Movement" last April (and which  premiered on Billboard.com ), has signed a U.S. label deal with RCA Records days after a YouTube video of ...

15. Former ADA President Mitch Wolk Joins SONGS Music Publishing As CFO

    September 17, 2013 6:19 AM EDT Veteran label exec Mitchell Wolk has been named CFO at SONGS Music Publishing. Through the second half of the 2000s, Wolk served as president and CEO of Alternative Distribution Alliance (ADA), the independent distribution and marketing division ...

16. Recording Academy's Neil Portnow Extends Contract Through 2019 (Exclusive)

    September 16, 2013 8:00 AM EDT Recording Academy president/CEO Neil Portnow has been contracted to remain in his post through 2019. The Academy’s Board of Trustees voted unanimously to extend Portnow’s contract, which was set to expire in 2015.   "Neil is a dynamic leade ...

17. Maroon 5, Kobalt Sign Exclusive Global Administration Deal

    September 16, 2013 6:00 AM EDT Maroon 5 has struck an exclusive, global administration deal with Kobalt Music Group, Billboard can reveal. Through the arrangement, Kobalt will represent the band for all of their new works, including their next album. The independent music com ...

18. P!nk Named Billboard's 2013 Woman of the Year

    September 16, 2013 12:30 AM EDT P!nk has been named Billboard's Woman of the Year and will be honored at the 2013 Billboard Women in Music event on Dec. 10 in New York City sponsored by COVERGIRL and City National Bank. The award honors the achievements of a trailblazi ...

19. Biz Poll: Which Major News Story Will Most Impact the Music Business' Future?

    September 13, 2013 1:38 PM EDT This time of year, the news cycle seems to shift into a head-spinning hyperspeed. In the last few days alone, Apple launched iTunes Radio and new iPhones; Twitter filed for an IPO; WMG and Clear Channel announced a groundbreaking deal; Vivendi i ...

20. Pharrell On 'Blurred Lines'-Marvin Gaye Lawsuit: 'All You Have To Do Is Read The Sheet Music'

    September 13, 2013 10:54 AM EDT Even though Pharrell is engaged in a battle with Marvin Gaye's estate over Robin Thicke's megahit "Blurred Lines," he wants to make one thing clear - he has incredible respect for the late soul legend. "I'm a huge f ...

21. Here's Why Warner Music's Deal with Clear Channel Could be Groundbreaking for the Future of the U.S. Music Biz (Analysis)

    September 12, 2013 7:32 PM EDT There's been a lot of confusion online about a groundbreaking new partnership between Clear Channel and Warner Music Group (WMG), but here's what you need to know: Clear Channel is paying artist performance royalties for terrestrial ...

22. Resolution’s Phil Casey on Chris Brown’s Upcoming World Tour, John Singleton Doc, Community Service, and More (Q&A)

    September 12, 2013 12:00 PM EDT Chris Brown is well on his way to becoming the new hardest-working man in show business. In the coming year, the Grammy-winning multiplatinum singer/songwriter will have his hands full with releasing a new studio album, embarking on a world ar ...

23. Vivendi Considering Splitting Media and Telecom Companies

    September 11, 2013 12:28 PM EDT French conglomerate Vivendi, which owns Universal Music Group, today announced that its supervisory board has unanimously voted to launch a study to split into two separate companies – an international media group and the SFR telecom group.  V ...

24. Village People's Victor Willis Wins Copyright Victory

    September 10, 2013 9:21 PM EDT Victor Willis, the Village People lyricist and performer of such songs as "Y.M.C.A." and "In the Navy," says he's reclaimed the rights to 33 songs he wrote. Under a copyright law from 1978, he told the New York Times he& ...

25. 2013 CMA Awards: Full Nominations List

    September 10, 2013 9:29 AM EDT Sheryl Crow and Florida Georgia Line today announced nominees for the 47th Annual Country Music Association Awards. Kacey Musgraves and Taylor Swift led all nominees with six nominations each, including nods for Female Vocalist of the Year and A ...

26. BMI Names Michael O'Neill as New President and CEO

    September 06, 2013 11:44 AM EDT Del Bryant, BMI's long-serving president and CEO who has spent over 40 years at the organization and 10 as its head, will be succeeded by Michael O'Neill, it was announced today. O'Neill has been with BMI for 20 years and is movi ...

27. Irving Azoff, MSG's James Dolan on $300 Million Joint Venture

    September 04, 2013 8:26 PM EDT In what amounted to his exit interview from his chairman post at Live Nation, mega manager Irving Azoff said his “biggest regret” was selling Front Line Management, the management company rollup that created the world’s largest management firm ...

28. Irving Azoff and Madison Square Garden Co. Announce $300 Million Joint Venture

    September 04, 2013 6:01 PM EDT The Madison Square Garden Company and Irving Azoff 's Azoff Music Management have announced the founding of Azoff MSG Entertainment, a jointly owned company in a $300 million deal that will expand on AMM's artist representation busi ...

29. Team 8 Founder Rich Cohen Joining Mick Artist Management as Partner

    September 04, 2013 4:07 PM EDT Rich Cohen, founder of Team 8 Management, is joining Mick Artist Management as a partner, joining Mick founder Michael McDonald and general manager Jonathan Eshak in the partnership, Billboard.biz has learned. Cohen founded Team 8 in 2007 and re ...

30. Warner Music Aims to Keep 'Happy Birthday' Away From Public Domain

    September 04, 2013 2:59 AM EDT With the English language's most recognized song at stake, Warner/Chappell Music is not backing down from a bold challenge. On Friday, the music publisher responded in court for the first time to a lawsuit that claims that "Happy Bi ...

31. BMG Rights Management to Acquire Bulk of Primary Wave's Publishing Assets (Exclusive)

    September 02, 2013 2:05 PM EDT Updated 11:13 AM -- BMG Rights Management, a subsidiary of German media conglomerate Bertelsmann, has agreed to acquire the bulk of publishing assets owned by the U.S.-based independent music publishing and management company Primary Wave, the ...

32. John Bromell, Former Warner Chappell Australia Head, Dies at 71

    September 01, 2013 9:59 PM EDT John Bromell, the award-winning Australian music executive who led Warner Chappell’s local affiliate for more than a decade, has died in a car accident. He was 71. Bromell crashed his car Saturday (Aug. 31) near his home at Coffs Harbour, New So ...

33. Business Matters: What If Musicians Went on Strike Against Digital Services Like Spotify? It’s Possible

    August 30, 2013 7:23 PM EDT What if musicians went on strike and refused to make their music available on the digital services that have attracted so much negative criticism in recent years? It's not an entirely pointless thought exercise. People go on strike all ...

34. New Signings: Boy George Signs with Kobalt, Rick Ross to ICM Partners, BMG Chrysalis US Land the Orwells

    August 30, 2013 7:30 AM EDT Here’s a look at the latest artist signings across the music industry, which include label, management, publishing and booking agency deals. Billboard.biz is interested in your company’s new signings. Please send announcements to Mitchell.Pete ...

35. Nathan Hubbard, Ex-Ticketmaster CEO, On Bringing Commerce To Twitter: ‘The Music Industry Should Be Tremendously Excited' (Q&A)

    August 28, 2013 4:57 PM EDT In a move that could have huge implications for the music industry, former Ticketmaster CEO and president Nathan Hubbard was named as Twitter’s first head of commerce on Aug. 27 , a move that heralds a broadening for the social networking behemo ...

36. Backbeat: BMI's Doreen Ringer-Ross Convenes Women Film & TV Composers, Hints at High Hopes

    August 28, 2013 12:47 PM EDT After a trip to International Film Festival of Cordoba, where she spoke on a panel -- "A Feminine Take on Music for Film" -- with Rachel Portman and Miriam Cutler, BMI’s Doreen Ringer-Ross thought it would be a good idea to revisit the ...

37. Sas Metcalfe Promoted at Kobalt Music Group

    August 28, 2013 5:00 AM EDT Kobalt Music Group stalwart Sas Metcalfe has been promoted from executive VP creative to the newly-created role of president, global creative. In a statement, Kobalt founder and CEO Willard Ahdritz explains that Metcalfe’s elevation is reward no ...

38. Rick Ross Signs with ICM Partners for Concert Bookings and More

    August 27, 2013 5:48 PM EDT Rapper Rick Ross has signed with ICM Partners for representation in all areas. Ross’ responsible agents for concerts at ICM are Zach Iser and Caroline Yim. Previously, the rapper’s live bookings were handled in-house by his team. New Signings: ...

39. Earl Sweatshirt, Jimmy Buffett and TGT Top 10 Bound on Billboard 200

    August 23, 2013 8:04 PM EDT After a week where only two albums debuted in the top 10 on the Billboard 200, next week should provide a healthy influx of new releases to the region. The new Billboard 200 chart's top 10 will be revealed on the morning of Aug. 28. John Ma ...

40. New Signings: August Alsina to Def Jam, Windish Agency Wins Bobby Womack, Frankie Rose Goes and Labrinth to Paradigm

    August 23, 2013 4:03 PM EDT Here’s a look at the latest artist signings across the music industry, which include label, management, publishing and booking agency deals. Billboard.biz is interested in your company’s new signings. Please send announcements to Mitchell.Peters ...

41. Marvin Gaye's Family Rejected Robin Thicke's Six-Figure Offer (Exclusive)

    August 23, 2013 8:27 AM EDT Billboard has learned that Robin Thicke’s team offered a six-figure sum to members of Marvin Gaye family in order to preempt a copyright infringement showdown, but the family turned it down. According to sources knowledgeable with the lawsu ...

42. Norman Winter, Music Publicist for Michael Jackson, Bob Dylan, Dr. Dre and MCA/Universal Records, Dies

    August 22, 2013 9:16 PM EDT Norman Winter, who in his long Hollywood career as a music publicist represented Michael Jackson, Bob Dylan,  Janet Jackson, Garth Brooks, Paul Anka and many  others, died Thursday in Las Vegas due to complications from Lewy Body disease, accord ...

43. Ed's Publishing Briefs: UMPG Re-ups Admin Deal with Warner Bros; Imagem Strikes Deal with Counting Crows, Jimmy Cliff; Coolio's Song Auction

    August 22, 2013 5:28 PM EDT UMPG SIGNS DEALS WITH WARNER BROS. ENTERTAINMENT, BURT BACHARACH Universal Music Publishing Group has renewed its worldwide music publishing administration agreement with Warner Bros. Entertainment, which will cover the music from Warner Bros. P ...

44. Getting Out The Vote: Round Two of CMA Awards Online Balloting Underway

    August 22, 2013 1:04 PM EDT The 24-hour period beginning at 8 p.m. on Aug. 19 saw a wealth of country events in Nashville: No. 1 parties for Jake Owen, Brad Paisley and Tim McGraw, and a dinner/listening party for Keith Urban’s forthcoming album "Fuse." There’s a ...

45. Gerardo Ortiz, Jenni Rivera, Arrolladora Banda El Limon Lead Billboard Mexican Music Award Finalists

    August 22, 2013 9:17 AM EDT Young norteño star Gerardo Ortiz, the late Jenni Rivera and ever-popular Arrolladora Banda El Limón de René Camacho lead the list of finalists for the third annual Billboard Mexican Music Awards, set to air live on the Telemundo Network Oct. 9 a ...

46. PRS for Music and YouTube Announce Licensing Deal

    August 21, 2013 3:54 PM EDT PRS for Music and YouTube have announced the signing of a license agreement, covering the more-than 100,000 artists, composers and publishers who are members of the performing rights organization. The agreement covers over 130 territories throug ...

47. Prince Royce Signs Publishing with Peermusic

    August 19, 2013 6:00 AM EDT Rising urban bachata star Prince Royce has signed an exclusive, worldwide co-publishing deal with peermusic, Billboard.biz has learned. The deal, which was signed jointly by peermusic’s Latin and pop departments encompasses all of Royce’s compos ...

48. OMD Launches OMD Sound, Looks to Get Music Advertising in Front of Its Blue Chip Clients (From the Magazine)

    August 16, 2013 2:22 PM EDT THIS ARTICLE FIRST APPEARED IN BILLBOARD MAGAZINE GET THIS WEEK'S ISSUE HERE OR SUBSCRIBE TO BILLBOARD HERE Typically when clients got pitched new ideas by media buying agency OMD, they'd meet with a modern-day "Mad Men"-like ...

49. Elvis Presley Estate Bid In Second Round, Sony Corp. and G2 Investment Group Among Expected Suitors

    August 14, 2013 8:24 PM EDT The auction for Core Media’s packaged estates of Elvis Presley and Muhammad Ali is now in the second round as bids are landing at the the Raine Group, the investment bank running the auction for Core Media. The New York Post reported that bids w ...

50. Chance the Rapper, with 'Acid Rap' Mixtape, Meets the Legal Black Hole Around Unsigned Artists (From the Magazine)

    August 14, 2013 12:08 PM EDT Nearly a decade after the mixtape wars of the mid-2000s, the format still resides in an awkward limbo for retailers, distributors, artists and labels. Many retailers stopped carrying mixtapes after the RIAA proved litigious against the sale of ...

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