Features
U2 Management Hit By Profit Drop
Three months after Paul McGuinness confirmed he’s stepping down as U2 manager, the band’s management company has recorded its fourth successive loss-making year.
Photo: William Murphy
Principle Management and Madonna’s management company, Maverick, have subsequently been acquired by Live Nation in deals that have reportedly cost it $30 million.
Guy Oseary, Madonna’s manager, had taken over the day-to-day running of U2’s affairs, while McGuinness remains chairman of Principle.
New abridged figures for the final full year that McGuinness was in charge, which ended March 31, 2013, show Principle’s accumulated profits decreased by 86 percent, falling from $4.56 million to $2 million.
According to Irish Independent, the cash pile held by Principle – now renamed Evergreen Ventures Ltd. – has also dropped by 86 percent. It’s gone from $5.3 million to $757,000.
This followed pre-tax losses at Principle Management topping $2.43 million in 2011 and $343,000 in 2010. The firm’s accumulated profits in 2011 stood at $7.43 million.