Michael Jackson’s estate has agreed to sell its remaining stake in a lucrative music catalog to Sony Corp. for $750 million, the entities announced Monday.
The terms call for Sony to make a lump sum payment of $733 million for Jackson’s 50 percent stake in Sony/ATV Music Publishing, as well as future distributions, according to a statement. Talks on a deal began in September, when Sony exercised its right under their joint venture to buy out Jackson’s estate.
Late King of Pop, Michael Jackson
The deal consolidate s Sony’s control over a catalog of almost 4 million songs as music industry revenues increasingly shift to subscription services offered by Apple Inc., YouTube and Spotify Ltd.
The Tokyo-based company is sharpening its focus on network services including game and movie streaming centered on its PlayStation console.
