In 2011, EMI agreed to sell its recording business to Universal Music Group for £1.2 billion ($1.9 billion) and its music publishers to a Sony-led consortium for $2.2 billion. [33] Other companies competing for the recording industry included Warner Music Group, which reportedly made a $2 billion offer. [34] IMPALA opposed the merger. [35] In March 2012, the European Union opened an investigation into the acquisition[36]. The EU asked competitors and consumer groups whether the transaction would lead to higher prices and exclude competitors. [37] Harleston`s lead role oversees a small army of lawyers and the legal affairs of a sprawling company that includes Capitol, Interscope, Republic, Motown, Island, Def Jam, Decca and Verve, as well as a leading global music publisher and the industry`s leading merchandising company, Bravado. He oversees all commercial transactions, contracts and litigation for UMG`s global operations, as well as government relations, trade and anti-piracy activities. In 2000, music companies, including UMG, entered into consent agreements with the Federal Trade Commission[110] without acknowledging liability[111] in which they agreed to cease using minimum price systems that provided subsidized cooperative advertising to retailers who agreed to comply with advertised minimum prices. [110] Universal Music Group (also known in the United States as UMG Recordings, Inc. and abbreviated as UMG) is an American global music company majority-owned by French media group Vivendi, with Chinese technology company Tencent holding a minority stake.
UMG`s global headquarters are located in Santa Monica, California. The largest music company in the world[3] is one of the “Big Three” labels alongside Sony Music and Warner Music Group. Ten percent of Universal Music Group was acquired by Tencent in March 2020 for $3 billion. [4] [5] [6] We are Universal Music Group, the world leader in music. We welcome the greatest artists, innovators and music entrepreneurs. On September 21, 2012, the sale of EMI to UMG in Europe and the United States was approved by the European Commission and the Federal Trade Commission, respectively. [38] However, the European Commission only cleared the transaction on condition that the merged entity divested one third of its total business to other companies with a proven track record in the music sector. UMG sold Mute Records, Parlophone, Roxy Recordings, MPS Records, Cooperative Music, Now That`s What I Call Music!, Jazzland, Universal Greece, Sanctuary Records, Chrysalis Records, EMI Classics, Virgin Classics and EMI`s European regional labels to comply with this condition. UMG retained The Beatles (formerly of Parlophone) and Robbie Williams (formerly of Chrysalis).
The Beatles` catalog was transferred to Calderstone Productions, newly formed by UMG, while Williams` catalog was transferred to Island Records. [39] [40] Throughout his career, Harleston has been recognized for his many accomplishments, including the 2020 Entertainment Law Initiative Service Award from the Recording Academy, the 2018 Billboard “Lawyer of the Year” award, and the 2018 Diversity Award from the Association of Corporate Counsel for Southern California. In 2017, Harleston was named one of the “Power 100” by Ebony Magazine and is recognized annually by Billboard on Billboard`s “Power 100” list of the most powerful executives in the music industry. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law are external online distributors of ALM`s extensive collection of current and archived versions of legal news publications. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law clients may access and use ALM content, including content from the National Law Journal, The American Lawyer, Legaltech News, New York Law Journal and Corporate Counsel, as well as other sources of legal information. In November 2017, USC Annenberg became the first music company to announce UMG`s partnership with the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative. The initiative aims to bring about changes in the representation of women and underrepresented racial and ethnic groups in the media industry. [78] [79] In 2019, Fast Company named Universal Music Group the most innovative music company, ranking UMG among the 50 most innovative companies in the world[7] and “amid the digital transformation of the music industry, Universal is redefining what a modern label should look like.” [8] UMG has licensing agreements with more than 400 platforms worldwide. On December 9, 2011, Megaupload released a music video titled “The Mega Song” featuring artists such as Kanye West, Snoop Dogg, Alicia Keys, and will.i.am supporting the company.[9] [131] The music video was also uploaded to YouTube, but deleted after a removal request by UMG.
If you have any questions, you can leave a message to the UMPG Royalty Customer Service Line (1-888-474-4979) or contact UMPG by email at umpg.royalty@umusic.com. Please include your full name and phone number in your message. For more information, you can also visit the For UMG Artists section of this site. If you believe that a Universal Music Group label owes you artist or mechanical royalties, or if you have not received an explanation, we may not have your correct address on file. Please visit UMG`s royalty statement portal to log in, view your royalty statements online and learn how to update your address. If you have an artist or mechanical royalty issue that requires you to speak to someone, you can leave a message to the Royalty Helpline (1-888-583-7176) or contact us by email at RoyaltyHelp@umusic.com. Please include your full name, phone number and a brief description of the problem in your message. A member of our service team will call you back or send you an email within 5 business days. That`s the case for Jeffrey Harleston, a leading lawyer and executive vice president of business and legal affairs at Universal Music Group – and now also leading a new UMG Inclusion and Social Justice Task Force.
In June, YouTube and UMG announced that they would update more than 1,000 popular music videos in high definition and publish them by 2020. [97] The Boston native has been with UMG since 1993 and has held a number of leadership positions, including Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer for Geffen Records and Senior Vice President of Commercial and Legal Affairs for MCA Records.