Sony Music may be willing to pay a lot of money to acquire the rights to Queen’s music catalogue.
Bloomberg reported Wednesday that the entertainment giant is in talks to buy the British rock band’s songbook, which includes hits such as “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “We Will Rock You,” for a massive $1 billion in one of the biggest deals in history.
Sony is reportedly teaming up with another unnamed investor to make a jaw-dropping acquisition offer that also includes merchandising and other business opportunities.
The company acquired half of Michael Jackson’s music catalog for $600 million in February, and Bob Dylan is also selling his catalog to Sony in 2022 in a deal estimated to be worth around $200 million. The New York Times.
Sony Music declined to comment, and a representative for Queen did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Adam Lambert replaced frontman Freddie Mercury after his death in 1991, and the band remains one of the longest-running bands in the world.
Former bandmates Brian May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon, as well as Mercury’s estate, are shareholders in Queen Productions, which generated revenue of $52 million for the 12 months ended September 20, 2022, according to Bloomberg.
The growth of paid streaming services like Spotify, combined with low interest rates, has helped the value of music catalogs soar over the past decade, but not all music deals have been huge successes.
In 2022, members of the band Pink Floyd offered to sell their catalog, which includes hits such as “Comfortably Numb” and “Money,” for at least $500 million, but no bids materialized, Bloomberg reported.
Companies that have focused on acquiring music rights have also seen mixed results.
For example, London-based Hipgnosis has acquired the song catalogs of artists including Blondie, Kaiser Chiefs and Red Hot Chili Peppers with the goal of turning music into assets, but has struggled to recoup its investment.
The company, which was founded in 2018, is currently being sold by Blackstone.
