Jackson family trust in tie-up with Sony Music for India entry

Sony/ATV Music Publishing, formed by Sony Music Global and the family trust of late pop icon Michael Jackson has entered into a joint venture (JV) with Sony Music Entertainment India Pvt Ltd—marking its India entry.

The JV will enable Sony Music Entertainment to represent Sony/ATV’s 750,000-plus global music assets in India, while Sony/ATV will represent Sony Music’s musical works internationally, Sony (India and West Asia) president Shridhar Subramaniam said on Wednesday.

“There is a huge opportunity in India with not only Hindi music, but also a strong presence of regional industry,” he told Business Standard here. “In a span of three years, we believe its value will constitute a third of the music industry.”

Sony/ATV is the second major to enter India after Universal Publishing’s tie-up with Mumbai-based Deep Emotions.

According to the statement, the JV firm will ensure “proper and timely” monitoring, tracking, collection and payment for the use of music they own and manage. As part of its monitoring mechanism, the JV company would also ensure corrective as well as punitive action against those using its music without necessary licence through collaborative efforts with local law-keeping authorities.

As per the agreement, Sony/ATV will manage Sony Music India’s publishing works overseas, while Sony Music India will manage Sony/ATV’s international repertoire—which includes The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Elvis Persley, Shakira, Pitbull, Michael Jackson, Bryan Adams, Beyonce and Lady Gaga—across India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. Sony/ATV will also focus on representing Indian talent, while it already administers over 2,000 of Sony Music India’s works across genres such as Bollywood and south Indian films and non-film talent in overseas markets.

At present, the music industry works on an arrangement where film producers and banners buy all rights from composers, lyricists and performers for a one-off fee, leaving creators with little chances of receiving regular revenues via publishing.

Media analysts said the tie-up will bring into India the best practices from international markets. Added Subramaniam: “This will not only be restricted to music. We’ll also be into advertising fraternity, televisions and concerts.”

Indian music industry is witnessing growth, due to various technologies like 3G, despite physical sales seeing negative growth. According to a Ficci-KPMG report on the media and entertainment industry, the music industry is expected to grow at compounded annual growth rate of 17 per cent—from Rs 850 crore in 2010 to Rs 18,700 crore in 2015.