Sony
Corp says it has signed an agreement with Michael Jackson's estate to buy for
$US750 million the deceased pop star's stake in Sony/ATV Music Publishing, the
world's largest music publisher which controls songs such as The Beatles' All
You Need Is Love.
As
part of the agreement, Sony will make a lump sum payment of about $US733
million ($A976.94 million) as well as distributions to the singer's estate, the
company said in a statement on Monday.
The
deal establishes Sony's control over the joint venture that Michael Jackson and
Sony formed in 1995. Jackson had bought ATV a decade earlier from Australian
businessman Robert Holmes a Court, outbidding Beatles singer Paul McCartney.
In
September 2015, Sony exercised a right in its contract with the Jackson estate
that allowed one partner to buy out the other.
"This
acquisition will enable Sony to more quickly adapt to changes in the music
publishing business," Michael Lynton, chief executive of Sony
Entertainment, said in the statement.
Sony/ATV
controls many popular songs such as All You Need Is Love, Moon River and The
Mission Impossible Theme, as well as representing the copyrights of musicians
such as Bob Dylan, Queen and The Rolling Stones.
Sony
said in a statement that the company and the singer's estate expect to execute
a definitive agreement by March 31.
In
October, the Wall Street Journal reported that Sony was moving ahead with a
plan to sell its half of Sony/ATV Music Publishing, and estimated the
publisher's value at around $US2 billion.
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