Universal have dotted the “I”s, crossed the “T”s, and announced the completion of their acquisition of EMI. 

As FACT wrote last week, “EMI’s ailing fortunes were exposed in 2007, when the company were revealed to have made a £260m loss over the year. Terra Firma Capital took ownership of the company the same year, by which time plenty of artists – Paul McCartney and Radiohead – had jumped ship. Citigroup subsequently bought EMI in 2010, and have been looking to hawk it ever since. Last November, Universal Music Group announced plans to buy the company, but the deal has been held in limbo pending approval from the European Commission”.

Although as part of the deal, EMI had to sell of Parlophone – home of Pink Floyd, Kylie Minogue and Blur – and Mute – Can, Depeche Mode, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – the acquisition still sees Universal take home ownership of The Beatles (who, despite being part of Parlophone, were excepted from the sale), Beatles, Katy Perry, Beach Boys and other giants of the music world.

As Music Week point out, the combined company now features a sea of renowned labels under its banner, including Polydor, Interscope, Island, Blue Note, Capitol, Motown, Virgin and more.

The deal has had a mixed reaction from the music world, and although Lucian Grainge, chairman and CEO of Universal Music Group, claims that “EMI is finally returning to people who have music in their blood … We remain true to our vision of investing in EMI, growing the company as a vibrant source of new music, offering consumers more choice and supporting the growth of online music services”, Martin Mills, chair of the independent Beggars Group (XL, 4AD, Matador, Rough Trade) thinks otherwise, stating that “It’s good to see that the Commission has seen this deal as such a threat to the market that it has demanded and received truly swingeing commitments to divestments. However, that should not conceal that fact that Universal’s arrogance has paid off for them, that they have destroyed a significant competitor, and that even with these divestments their ability to dominate and control the market has reached even more unacceptable levels. Anyone trying to start a new digital service will be realising that very soon, and we will continue to look to the regulators to monitor ongoing behaviour.”