business
FTX: It took ‘Herculean investigative effort’ to identify $5.5B in liquid assets
The debtors behind FTX have identified $5.5 billion in liquid assets but reported a “substantial shortfall of digital assets” at the bankrupt crypto exchange and its U.S. arm. In a Jan. 17 announcement, FTX said it had identified $1.7 billion in cash, $3.5 billion in crypto assets and $0.3 billion in securities following the firm filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November. The debtors added that they had identified roughly $1.6 billion in digital assets associated with FTX.com — including roughly $426 million being held by the Securities Commission of the Bahamas — and $181 million connected to FTX US. “We are making important progress in our efforts to maximize recoveries, and it has taken a Herculean investigative effort from our team to uncover this preliminary information,” said FTX ...
SiriusXM Taps Former Wall Street Journal Marketing Chief for New Subscription Role
SiriusXM has brought on Suzi Watford, the former chief marketing officer for Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal, to oversee the satellite radio giant’s streaming subscription business, the company said on Tuesday. Watford will join SiriusXM in the newly created role of chief growth officer and report to Joe Verbrugge, SiriusXM’s chief commercial officer. Her position will also include oversight of corporate marketing, data and research across SiriusXM and Pandora. “Suzi has repeatedly demonstrated her ability to build and lead talented teams to evolve and grow profitable consumer subscription businesses, and we are thrilled to have her join us,” Verbrugge said in a statement. Watford has spent the majority of her career at Murdoch-controlled media companies like News Corp.’s N...
Patrick Moxey’s New Helix Records to Onboard Entire Roster to Web3
Patrick Moxey is bringing the entire roster of Helix Records, the EDM label he launched last year after selling his stake in Ultra Records, into the world of Web3 — starting with an NFT membership pass. Starting in February, the Helix Records Genesis Pass will act as a digital passport to the Helix ecosystem and grant holders a free music NFT from one of the roster’s flagship artists, which includes electronic duo Snakehips and house DJ Marshall Jefferson. Later in 2023, NFT holders will get the chance to access VIP tickets, backstage passes and submit music directly to the label for feedback. One holder will win a 1:1 conversation with Moxey. Moxey — who played a key role in the success of Avicii, Kygo, deadmau5 and David Guetta through Ultra Records — aims to make Web3 and NFTs a foundat...
YouTube Renews Coachella Deal Through 2026
YouTube and Goldenvoice have once again renewed their livestream and content partnership agreement for the Coachella Valley Music and Arts festival, striking an agreement that keeps the mega two-weekend festival on the Google-owned video platform through 2026. First signed in 2011, the streaming partnership was renewed in 2018 through 2021 — the 2020 and 2021 versions of the festival were postponed due to COVID-19. Last year, the two companies worked out an agreement to air the festival’s post-pandemic return. Besides multichannel live streaming and on-demand video from performances, the partnership enables fan shopping for Coachella merch, exclusive content for YouTube Premium subscribers, live chat, and onsite activations with YouTube creators and artists. YouTube’s global head of music ...
Seoul government opens city’s metaverse project to public
The Seoul Metropolitan Government has launched its Metaverse Seoul project, allowing residents of the South Korean capital city to access city services in a virtual environment. In a Jan. 16 press briefing, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon announced the launch of the first phase of Metaverse Seoul following beta testing of the project. According to the mayor, the online environment will be a “place of communication for citizens” of the capital city, allowing them to virtually visit many of Seoul’s attractions, access official documents, file certain complaints, and receive answers to questions on filing municipal taxes. ‘메타버스 서울’ 내놓은 오세훈 “독자적 구축이 바람직” https://t.co/7D6Jqmojni PK되면 갓겜될 듯 pic.twitter.com/s6ovgnDOQl — 돌으 (@fangdor) January 16, 2023 The city’s government reportedl...
‘Uptown Funk’ at Heart of New Royalties Lawsuit Against BMG
BMG Rights Management is facing a new lawsuit claiming the publisher has failed to pay royalties from Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars‘ smash hit “Uptown Funk” to the families of late members of the Gap Band who are credited as co-writers on the song. In a complaint filed Thursday in Manhattan federal court, the heirs of Robert and Ronnie Wilson claim that BMG breached a 2015 deal that was inked because “Uptown Funk” incorporated elements of the Gap Band’s 1979 song “I Don’t Believe You Want to Get Up and Dance (Oops Upside Your Head).” “Despite its obligations to account for and pay to plaintiffs their share of all income received from the Uptown Funk musical composition, BMG has refused and failed to provide either the funds due to plaintiffs or an accounting despite plaintiffs’ repeated deman...
Warner Bros. Discovery Exploring Sale of Music Assets
Warner Bros. Discovery is exploring a sale of its music assets that could be worth upwards of $1 billion, according to a source familiar with the matter. The catalog is being shopped by famed entertainment attorney Allen Grubman. While the potential sale — which was first reported by The Financial Times — is still in the very early stages, some of Warner Bros. Discovery’s current music partners could be potential buyers. Universal Music Group (UMG) already administers the publishing assets, which are likely the largest part of the deal, and Warner Music Group (WMG) distributes WaterTower Music, Warner Bros. Discovery’s in-house record label. The assets being shopped, including music and production music from the company’s television and film projects, are not the kinds of music rights...
Why Coachella Always Announces Its Lineup First — And What Happens When It’s Late
With Tuesday’s flurry of festival lineups — including Boston Calling, Bonnaroo, Sonic Temple Festival, and, finally, Coachella — the 2023 North American festival season formally kicked off, and music fans can expect more announcements to follow. This figurative ringing of the bell is typically reserved for Coachella (and Coachella alone), which usually announces its lineup the first week of January. But when Los Angeles-based concert promoter Goldenvoice didn’t deliver on time — for unexplained reasons — it left some executives wondering what to expect from potential ripple effects throughout the festival circuit. That’s due to Coachella’s contracts and stature in the business. Coachella’s artist contracts come with radius clauses that give the Southern California festiv...
Binance approved to offer crypto services to Swedish customers
The Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority, one of the country’s financial regulatory agencies, has granted the local arm of crypto exchange Binance approval to manage and trade digital currencies. According to a Jan. 11 announcement, Binance said following “months of constructive engagement” with the financial regulator, the Swedish FSA granted Binance Nordics AB registration status on Jan. 10. This decision effectively allows Swedish residents to access Binance’s crypto services. “Sweden fully adopts EU laws and has further local requirements, so we have been careful to ensure that Binance Nordics AB has adopted risk and AML policies to match this exacting standard,” said Roy van Krimpen, Binance’s lead in the region. ”Our next big task will be the successful migration and launch ...
Harry Styles Sues Over Fake Merch On the Internet, Says He Must Protect ‘Unknowing’ Fans
Harry Styles is on the legal offensive to combat fake merch on the internet. In a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Chicago federal court, the pop star sued a number of online sellers for allegedly violating his intellectual property rights by selling counterfeit merchandise to unsuspecting Harry fans. Arguing that the counterfeiters use misleading tactics to make it “difficult for consumers to distinguish such stores from an authorized retailer,” attorneys for Styles want a judge to issue a sweeping court order that would, among other things, force big web platforms like Amazon and Etsy (who are not named as defendants) to immediately shut down the listings. “Plaintiff is forced to file this action to combat defendants’ counterfeiting of its registered trademarks, as well as to protect unknowing c...
Billboard’s Power Players’ Choice Award: Vote for Music’s Most Impactful Executive (Semifinalists)
The second round of voting is now open for Billboard‘s first-ever Power Players’ Choice Award, featuring the top 20 nominees voted by their peers. Voting is open to all Billboard Pro members, both existing and new, with one vote per member. Vote below. As previously announced, for the first time ever, Billboard is introducing a peer-voted award to its annual Power 100 ranking of the music industry’s most influential executives. This new Power Players’ Choice Award will honor the executive whose peers believe has the most impact across the music business over the past year, from recording and publishing to touring. The second round of voting featuring the top 20 nominees is now open and will end at 11:59 p.m. EST on Jan. 12. The top five vote-getters will proceed to the third round, beginni...
Nick Jonas, RZA and Blxst Join Speaker Roster at SXSW
Nick Jonas, Blxst and Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA are among the music stars set to speak at this year’s South By Southwest, organizers announced today (Jan. 10). The pop and hip-hop artists are among the third batch of speakers for SXSW, which takes place March 10 – 19, 2023 in Austin, Texas. Jonas, a solo artist and member of the chart-topping sibling act Jonas Brothers, will speak on the health-focused panel, Crushing: The Burden of Diabetes on Patients; Blxst will tackle a session entitled, How Music, Entrepreneurship & Independence Intersect, facilitated by Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop reporter Heran Mamo; while RZA, the producer, director, screenwriter, rapper and composer, will take the mic as a featured speaker. Also on board as featured speakers are Eric André, Josh D’Amaro, Tommy Dorfma...
