Features
Kobalt Snags McCartney’s Post-Beatles Songwriting
Kobalt Music Group Ltd., an upstart music publisher that is now one of the world’s biggest, said Tuesday that it will manage the copyrights of Paul McCartney’s post-Beatles songs such as “Ebony and Ivory” and “Band on the Run” along with works managed by McCartney’s MPL Communications group outside of North America and the U.K.
The deal marks a break for McCartney from EMI, which was acquired for $2.2 billion by a group of investors led by Sony/ATV last month, making it the world’s biggest music publisher.
The move ensures different managers for McCartney’s Beatles and non-Beatles hits in markets not already served by MPL.
It also represents the growing popularity of Kobalt among artists.
Kobalt says it pays songwriters about 25 percent more than other publishers because of its streamlined structure and better tracking of song plays around the world.
“We have grown by delivering service, quality, and results to our clients. We have not bought our growth. We have earned it,” said Kobalt CEO and founder Willard Ahdritz in an interview.