Musikdeal: Bertelsmann schließt Milliarden-Deal für neues Musikunternehmen

Bertelsmann has secured a billion-dollar deal to expand its music business in the United States by merging its German subsidiary BMG with US rival Concord. All relevant competition authorities have granted clearance for the consolidation, Bertelsmann announced on Tuesday. This marks one of the largest transactions in the company's history, said Bertelsmann chief Thomas Rabe.

Following the creation of Penguin Random House and the merger of RTL and Sky Deutschland, this is another significant step in consolidating forces, creating substantial value, and strengthening worldwide content businesses. Bertelsmann has primarily focused on three pillars: media with Penguin Random House as the world's largest publisher and the TV subsidiary RTL, services with Arvato, and the education sector.

Now, BMG will join Concord under the name BMG, becoming the global number four in the music industry behind Universal, Sony, and Warner. Thomas Coesfeld, the previous BMG CEO, who has been in charge since January 2027, stated that the new company will have a strong market position and growth opportunities. Bertelsmann will now hold 67% of the combined entity, while the Michigan pension fund, which owns Concord, receives 33% plus a one-time payment of $1.16 billion in cash, as previously announced in April.

Bertelsmann also revealed that it secured around €1.1 billion in equity through an agreement with investment firm Apollo, which will gain a minority stake in a portion of BMG's rights portfolio. The merged company is projected to generate a pro-forma annual revenue of $2.2 billion and a net operating profit (EBITDA adjusted) of $730 million by 2026.

BMG itself anticipates revenue of over $2.5 billion and a profit of $1.2 billion in the medium term. Rabe will hand over Bertelsmann with ambitious plans to expand the company.