Sony Music is purportedly in the process of purchasing Queen’s music library for a cool £1 billion.
The ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ band, which still consists of Roger Taylor and Sir Brian May, has been in negotiations for years to sell their impressive back catalog of records, and it is now thought that a deal is close to being finalized.
The music catalog and other rights are “in the process of being acquired” by Sony for the astronomical amount, according to a Variety story.
Hits claims that the only revenue not covered by the agreement is from live performances. It is anticipated that the deal will finalize during the following several weeks.
While Brian and Roger continue to tour with singer Adam Lambert, John Deacon has withdrawn from the spotlight following the 45-year-old Freddie Mercury’s death in 1991.
After a $10 million licensing deal was struck in 1991, Disney purchased Queen’s recorded music rights in the US and Canada in the 2000s for an undisclosed sum.
The House of Mouse will retain ownership of those rights indefinitely, but after the agreement is finalized, Sony will get the remaining payments for some band members.
The group’s distribution arrangement with Universal will go to Sony in all non-US and Canadian markets, but only after it ends in 2026 or 2027.
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It was reported earlier this year that Deacon would not include his portion of the assets in a potential purchase. Deacon has not performed publicly for the band since the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert in 1992, which followed the frontman’s passing the year before.
A few of the group’s classic hits are “Radio Gaga,” “We Are The Champions,” “We Will Rock You,” “Another One Bites The Dust,” “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” and “Somebody To Love.” The group also released 15 studio albums, the last of which, “Made In Heaven,” was released in 1995 and contained recordings made by Mercury prior to his passing.
An agreement is reached at the same time that some well-known songwriting catalogs were sold for hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years, including collections from David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, and Bob Dylan.
Because labels can potentially get recurring royalties from their use in radio plays, TV shows, movies, and advertisements, they have shown to be a compelling investment.
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