Bertelsmann merges BMG and Concord to create a giant of independent music

   
     
     
   

   

(AFP / TOBIAS SCHWARZ)

 

  Bertelsmann, the media giant, announced on Tuesday that it will merge its music activities with those of American company Concord to create a global leader in independent music.

  The two groups have reached “a merger agreement” for the music companies BMG, owned by Bertelsmann, and Concord, whose shareholder is the American fund Great Mountain Partners, to merge into a new company retaining the name BMG, according to a statement.

  The global headquarters of this entity will be in Nashville in the United States, where Concord is based, and the European headquarters in Berlin.

  “Following this transaction, which includes a cash contribution and shares, Bertelsmann will own 67% of the new entity’s capital,” detailed the statement, and “Concord shareholders will acquire 33% of the shares held by Great Mountain Partners.”

  “This operation is one of the most significant in Bertelsmann’s history over its more than 190 years,” said the departing chairman of the executive board, Thomas Rabe, as quoted in the statement.

  The valuation of the new entity will amount to 12.4 billion euros, according to information from the economic newspaper Handelsblatt.

  According to Mr. Rabe, the transaction should allow the Gütersloh group (western Germany) to “expand its presence in the United States,” which represented 28% of its revenue in 2025.

  According to BMG’s CEO Thomas Coesfeld, who will take over Bertelsmann in January 2027, the new entity “will have a uniquely diverse repertoire, including over four million titles.”

  BMG’s catalog, created in 2008, represents over 3 million recordings, including artists such as Jean-Michel Jarre, Tina Turner, Jelly Roll, and Paul Simon. Concord represents 125,000 artists with a catalog of 1.3 million songs and other recordings.

  The company is expected to generate an annual pro forma revenue of 2.2 billion dollars (1.88 billion euros) in 2026.

  The completion of the operation, which still needs to be approved by competition authorities, is expected in the fourth quarter of 2026.