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The story
Music at Bertelsmann
The origins of the company can be traced back to the 1950s, when Bertelsmann entered the music business after it added music to its book club. Ariola, a record label, was launched and Sonopress, a pressing plant, was established. In 1975, Ariola opened an office in the United States. Bertelsmann acquired Arista Records in 1979 and half ownership of RCA Records in 1985, thereby becoming one of the world's largest music companies. After the full acquisition of RCA Records in 1987, Bertelsmann's various subsidiaries were brought together to form Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG), which covered a number of genres, including folk, pop, and especially classical music.
In response to declining sales in the overall music market, Bertelsmann agreed to merge its record label interests with Sony in 2003; the company was called Sony BMG. Furthermore, in 2006, Bertelsmann sold its subsidiary BMG Music Publishing to Universal Music Group. Having reached the conclusion that established music publishing companies and record labels were not appropriate for an increasingly digital music business, Bertelsmann sold its stake in the Sony BMG joint venture in 2008. The company was subsequently renamed Sony Music Entertainment.
Launch of the new BMG
In October 2008, Bertelsmann launched the new BMG with a small portfolio of recorded music rights of around 200 artists it retained from Sony BMG. It declared it would pursue a business model focused on fairness, service and transparency.
The launch of the new BMG came amidst the 2008 financial crisis, and within two weeks of the collapse of Lehman Brothers. Since Bertelsmann could not supply the required funds on its own, a 51% stake was sold to financial investor KKR in 2009. Bertelsmann retained 49% and the right to appoint the company's management. The transaction allowed BMG to increase its equity ratio.
International expansion
Initially, Bertelsmann had announced that the new BMG would focus on the European broadcast market. After KKR became the majority shareholder, the company set its sights on expanding internationally. A key step towards achieving this goal was acquiring Cherry Lane Music Publishing in 2009, which provided BMG with its first foothold in the United States. BMG made several other purchases in 2010, including Evergreen Copyright Acquisitions.
In 2011, Bug Music was bought by BMG, followed by music publisher R2M Music in 2012. Bertelsmann was also reported to be interested in buying EMI, but EMI was ultimately acquired by Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group (record labels) and Sony/ATV Music Publishing (songwriters). The regulatory authorities approved the deal subject to some conditions, including the sale of several labels. BMG was thus able to acquire Mute Records (2012) and Sanctuary Records (2013), as well as the publishing catalogues of EMI Virgin Music and Famous Music UK from Sony/ATV.
On April 28, 2026, BMG and Concord announced they would combine, operating under the BMG name. The combined company will call its publishing division BMG Publishing and its recorded music division Concord Records.
Becoming a group division
In 2013, KKR sold its stake in BMG to Bertelsmann, making it the sole shareholder of the company. Under the leadership of chief executive officer Thomas Rabe, who had been a key driver of BMG's expansion during his time as Chief Financial Officer, Bertelsmann again cited music as one of its strategic growth areas.
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In 2013, the company began to represent rights to songs by Robbie Williams and the Rolling Stones. Record labels were also added to the portfolio including Union Square Music (distributor of Universal Music's ZTT Records and Stiff Records), Vagrant Music and Infectious Music (2014), as well as S-Curve Records and Rise Records (2015). Other acquisitions followed in 2016, including the label ARC Music and the catalog of The End Records. By acquiring Basement, BMG entered the market in Brazil, one of Bertelsmann's growth regions. In 2016, the company also signed an agreement with Warner Music's Alternative Distribution Alliance for the physical and digital distribution of music, allowing BMG to consolidate its longstanding sales structures. BMG further expanded by entering the Chinese market in cooperation with Alibaba, allowing the online company to distribute the work of musicians and composers via its web channels while securing copyrights.
In the 2015 financial year, BMG was part of the Corporate Investments division at Bertelsmann. In 2016, the media group turned the subsidiary into a stand-alone division. Today, BMG is considered a prime example of how growth platforms are created and leveraged at Bertelsmann.
Acquisition of BBR Music, new labels and the merger with Concord
In 2017, BMG announced the purchase of BBR Music Group, including the labels Broken Bow Records, Red Bow Records, Stoney Creek Records, Wheelhouse Records and the music publisher Magic Mustang Music. With a value of more than 100 million dollars, the transaction was the largest recorded music acquisition in the company's history. BMG thus improved its position in the country music segment and ensured its long-term presence in the Nashville music industry and its overall impact on the United States market.
In 2022, BMG announced its first new British record label within the group since 2009, Tag8 Music. This label was set up in association with ex-Bros member Craig Logan and his management company Logan Media Entertainment, with Tag8 Music featuring established acts such as Pixie Lott, Roachford, and Louise Redknapp as part of its roster. On the Official Albums Chart of 4 November 2022, the label charted its first hit album in the form of Blue's Heart & Soul.
In October 2023, BMG signed with Universal Music Group for physical distribution, and started self-distributing its own catalog on digital platforms, thus ending their partnership with Warner Music. The transition of physical distribution to Universal took place over the course of 2024, and the change was completed later in October 2024.
In April 2026, BMG announced that the company will merge with Concord to create the fourth major music company in the world. The new firm is scheduled to operate under the BMG name (with record label operations under the "Concord Records" name & music publishing operations under the "BMG Publishing" name), with Bertelsmann owning a 67% stake in the new company and the remainder owned by Great Mountain Partners, and with its corporate headquarters moving to Nashville in the United States, while the Berlin offices remain as both the European headquarters, as well as its operations headquarters. On June 12, 2026, the merger was approved by the German Federal Cartel Office. On June 17, 2026, the merger was approved by the US competition authorities and the merger was completed on September 1, 2026.
From Wikipedia’s article on BMG Rights Management, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5