Business Frame Weekly – Universal Music Group (UMG) is finishing 2023 with a bang./ SoundCloud is experiencing something new: annual profitability.

Universal Music Group (UMG) is finishing 2023 with a bang.

SoundCloud is experiencing something new, a full 16 years after it was founded: annual profitability.

Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited has sold a catalog of around 20,000 songs for $23.1 million.

In this newsletter:

• Universal Music Group (UMG) is finishing 2023 with a bang.
• SoundCloud is experiencing something new, a full 16 years after it was founded: annual profitability.
• PPL Announces $62 Million Q4 Distribution, Drawing Revenue from a Record 63 CMOs
• Armada Music‘s BEAT Music Fund’s campaign to invest $100 million in dance music rights
• Secretly Distribution signs new deals including Danger Mouse's 30th Century Records & more
• Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited has sold a catalog of around 20,000 songs for $23.1 million.

December 19, 2023

Universal Music Group (UMG) is finishing 2023 with a bang.

Universal Music Group (UMG) is finishing 2023 with a bang. The world’s largest music rightsholder ended its trading day today (December 12) on the Amsterdam Euronext with its highest share price of the year to date. In fact, with a share price of EUR €25.77, UMG finished today with its largest public valuation for two years. According to Euronext data, UMG’s share price today translated into a market cap valuation of EUR €46.944 billion.

SoundCloud is experiencing something new, a full 16 years after it was founded: annual profitability.

SoundCloud is experiencing something new, a full 16 years after it was founded: annual profitability. According to company data shared with Music Business Worldwide, SoundCloud is currently on course to post a slim – but positive – EBITDA for calendar/fiscal 2023. The firm’s internal guidance shows that it’s currently projecting annual revenues of EUR €288 million (USD $310m) for 2023, up 7.5% YoY or 9% YoY at constant currency (USD).

PPL Announces $62 Million Q4 Distribution, Drawing Revenue from a Record 63 CMOs

Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL) has announced an all-time-high Q4 payout of over $62 million (£48.7 million). The London-headquartered collective management organization (CMO) today announced the December distribution, which is said to mark a roughly 13 percent improvement from that delivered to the entity’s member performers and recorded rightsholders for Q4 2022.

Armada Music‘s BEAT Music Fund’s campaign to invest $100 million in dance music rights

Armada Music‘s BEAT Music Fund’s campaign to invest $100 million in dance music rights in the first two years of its existence continues apace, with the fund announcing on Thursday a series of new acquisitions, including the entire back catalog of Sola Records. The Netherlands-headquartered investment fund has also acquired “a significant portion” of the catalog of VIVa MUSiC, the UK-headquartered label launched in 2006 by DJ Steve Lawler. Additionally, BEAT Music Fund has acquired the master recordings of Ran-D’s Zombie and Human Resource’s Dominator.

Secretly Distribution signs new deals including Danger Mouse's 30th Century Records & more

Secretly Distribution has announced a deal with Danger Mouse’s 30th Century Records as part of a series of new partnerships unveiled at the end of its 25th anniversary year. Alongside the deal with Danger Mouse’s (above) imprint, Secretly Distribution – headed by CEO Darius Van Arman (pictured) – has confirmed agreements with Bella Figura Music for David Gray’s catalogue and Madlib’s Madlib Invazion. With 30th Century Records, Secretly Distribution will support all of the label’s new music and back catalogue, including vinyl reissues such as Gnarls Barkley’s St. Elsewhere album.

Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited has sold a catalog of around 20,000 songs for $23.1 million.

UK-listed Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited has sold a catalog of around 20,000 songs for a gross consideration of $23.1 million. In an announcement to the market on Monday (December 11), HSF said that “these non-core songs, which are a subset of those identified as the Second Disposal as set out in September, were bundled with the iconic Songs acquired by the Company in 2020 as part of Kobalt Fund One“. Hipgnosis has not confirmed the name of the buyer. The ‘Second Disposal’ referred to there by HSF was announced on September 14 as part of a set of proposals by the HSF board and its investment adviser, the Merck Mercuriadis-led Hipgnosis Song Management (HSM), which they believed at the time would act as a catalyst for a re–rating of the company’s share price.

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