News Universal Music UK restructures, merging Island and EMI labels while launching new Audience and Media DivisionPolydor Label Group will house Capitol UK and 0207 Def Jam labels
News Done deal: Blackstone is the new owner of Hipgnosis Songs Fund, as investment giant’s bid wins shareholder approvalVast majority of HSF shareholders agree to accept Blackstone's USD $1.584 billion offer
Analysis Blog Why Daniel Ek’s celebration of local artists is really anti-‘streaming tax’ spinMBW founder Tim Ingham on the real motivations behind the Spotify founder's LinkedIn applause for local artists in various nations
Analysis News Record companies tell MBW: Nope, the industry isn’t losing paying subscribers in SwedenRecord companies left bemused by YouGov findings, as MBW reveals their internal data in key market
Analysis A warning sign? Sweden has fewer paying music subscribers than it did 2 years ago, according to YouGov survey.New report suggests that Swedish consumers are potentially becoming more price-sensitive for streaming music
Interviews Denis Ladegaillerie has Believe back in his arms – and he’s eyeing a huge acquisitionFrench entrepreneur explains why he's trying to find the perfect acquisition opportunities to explode Believe's business
News Create Music Group, at $1 billion valuation, raises $165 million investment roundCreate says money will help fuel growth in scale and its global acquisition strategy
News Denis Ladegaillerie’s consortium now owns 94.99% of Believe, as ex-Shazam boss joins company boardFour months after Ladegaillerie launched bid with EQT and TCV, we're nearly at the finish line
News Amra has invested more than $50m in its tech to date – with most of it spent in the past 3 yearsThe company claims that these enhancements have directly resulted in an uplift in revenues
News Harmonix co-founder Alex Rigopulos and esteemed lawyer Priyanka Khimani join Songtradr boardSongtradr says duo will help company in its next phase of global growth
Analysis How Sony’s $6bn+ M&A splurge has set the pace for music acquisitions over the past decadeRob Stringer claimed last month that Sony has outstripped spending at other major companies
Analysis Hipgnosis Songs Fund’s catalog turned out to be worth more than a lot of people thought.In light of Blackstone's latest bid, MBW crunches the numbers on what HSF spent on assets... and what they're worth now
Interviews Key Songs In The Life Of… Max LousadaMBW hands our turntable over to Max Lousada, Global CEO of Recorded Music at Warner Music Group
Analysis Sony generated $2.5bn from recorded music and publishing in calendar Q1 2024, up 14.7% YoYSony's corporate music division posted annual revenues of nearly $11 billion in the 12 months to end of March
Analysis Spotify is playing a dangerous game…This article originally appeared within the latest MBW+ Monthly Review email, issued exclusively to MBW+ subscribers.