Sony has agreed to acquire half of Michael Jackson’s catalogue from the star’s estate in what is probably the richest transaction for a single musician’s work, according to two people briefed on the agreement.
The deal, which has been gossiped about in the music industry for months, is said to involve Sony purchasing a 50 per cent stake in Jackson’s recorded music and songwriting catalogues. That includes not only the estate’s share of megahits such as Beat It and Bad, but also the music publishing assets that are part of Jackson’s “Mijac” catalogue, among them songs written by Sly Stone and tracks made famous by artists such as Ray Charles and Jerry Lee Lewis.
The deal is said to value Jackson’s assets at US$2.1 billion or more, according to the two people, who were granted anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly about it. Even so, it leaves some of the estate’s interests in other lucrative Jackson-related businesses off the table, including the Broadway musical MJ, Cirque du Soleil’s Jackson-themed shows, and a biopic in the works that is set to star Jaafar Jackson, a son of Jackson’s brother Jermaine.
![Michael Jackson performs on stage during his HIStory tour in December 1996. Photo / Phil Dent / Redferns](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/GBQ77ZKIEJFPZEJG7JHTI3FVCI.jpg?auth=fa7fdd425591fba2eafe0cb551f564031cf0984873992e3cf7b8445bc1585710&width=16&height=11&quality=70&smart=true)
The transaction is said to leave the estate a significant degree of control over the catalogue. That contrasts with many other blockbuster catalogue deals in recent years, including those for the work of Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Paul Simon. Although those sales sometimes include finely negotiated parameters over how an artist’s work can be used in the future — say, in commercials or political endorsements — they generally hand over management of songs to a buyer.