Headlines

July 30, 2008

Live Nation may outsource music sales...to major labels...

New York Post | Read Full Story >

Rather than an overall deal with just one label partner, CEO Michael Rapino is considering doing licensing deals on an artist-by-artist basis, a source inside Live Nation said.

Under that scenario, Warner Music Group could end up handling the marketing, promotion and distribution of albums by the very acts that defected from it to join Live Nation: Nickelback and Madonna.

“Rapino wants to outsource everything,” said a second source close to the situation. “He doesn’t want to build an infrastructure or carry any overhead.”

The move is mirrored after the “rent-a-system” model used in Hollywood, whereby one studio produces a movie but licenses all the other functions to another studio that already has a distribution and marketing infrastructure.

Live Nation’s talks, which sources say are still in their early stages, represent the latest retrenchment from the strategy of former chairman Michael Cohl, who sought to transform the touring giant into a multi-faceted powerhouse, including a record company.

News of the potential outsourcing move follows last week’s dismissal of industry veterans Bob Ezrin, Bob Cahill and Bill Hein, all of whom were Artist Nation employees hired by Cohl to create a label infrastructure for Live Nation’s newly signed acts.


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#1 Ha! says:

This makes sense. Cohl must have been out of his damn mind. Look at how crazy Madonna is looking. She can't handle the pressure under this current deal. Yeah, yeah, A-Rod, her brother's book, but she's under a lot of pressure to make this a successful tour. It's not gonna be...I'm starting to gain respect for WMG. Lay in the cut until things shake out...

#2 wow says:

didn't see this one coming (ha ha)

#3 Forward Thinker says:

Wow, smart move to license the music out to companies who have failed at just about everything over the past decade as a result of their fat cats trying to maintain power and refusing to be progressive. I'd license these deals out to major labels as soon as I'd invest in SUV dealerships. Good work Live Nation!


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