Warner Bros Discovery reportedly selling half of its music assets
Warner Bros Discovery is currently negotiating the sale of half of its movie and TV music-publishing assets for a fee reported to be around $500million.
The current deal is currently unknown, as are the titles which would be included in the negotiation. However, there are rumours, according to Hit, that popular music from the likes of Casablanca, Purple Rain, Sweeny Todd, Evita, Dick Tracy, Sesame Street, Batman, and Rent is part of the catalogue.
The company are currently experiencing massive debt, owing $49.5 billion. Therefore, some insiders are suggesting that it would be a smart financial move for Warner Bros Discovery to sell these assets to pay off the staggering debt.
According to Variety, a source claims that “slightly less than half” of the catalogue will most likely go to one of the major labels, like Sony. Allen Grubman, an attorney, will be overseeing the deal for the company’s CEO, David Zaslav.
However, some people are concerned that the deal isn’t as smart as others suggest. Most of these assets are decades old and “declining” in value.
Due to the nature of much of the music – theme songs and cues – the assets aren’t as useful as standard pop songs. Still, the investment could be good for Warner Bros, which has faced a tough few years.
Over the past year, the company have laid off lots of staff, binned finished projects, and removed a large handful of television episodes from streaming services. They’ve also been affected by the writer’s strike, which began in May.
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