Over Two Years Later, Pink Floyd’s Catalog Has a Buyer — Sony Music Reportedly Scoops Up Name, Likeness, and Recording Rights in $400M Deal
Nick Mason and David Gilmour performing live. Photo Credit: anyonlinyr
Several years, twists, and turns later, Pink Floyd has reportedly sold its recordings and more to Sony Music Entertainment in an approximately $400 million deal.
That long-awaited sale entered the media spotlight in a Financial Times report, and DMN received separate confirmations of a finalized transaction from parties with knowledge of the matter. However, neither Sony Music nor the almost six-decade-old band had acknowledged the deal via a formal statement or release at the time of writing.
But we’ve been tracking the high-profile (and high-value) IP selloff since the summer of 2022. For a time, evidence suggested that Pink Floyd was close to cashing in on the body of work – with BMG, Warner Music, and more mentioned as possible purchasers.
Subsequently, different evidence, including the contentious relationship and reported infighting between David Gilmour and Roger Waters, pointed to a fizzled-out attempt at a sale.
Following a decidedly quiet 2023, that changed earlier in 2024, when Gilmour last month rather conspicuously expressed renewed interest in selling. Of course, nearly half-billion-dollar transactions don’t come to fruition overnight; assuming today’s indications of a sealed sale are accurate, related talks had presumably been ongoing for a while before the public declaration.
In any event, the Times pointed to recording, name, and likeness rights’ (excluding compositional interests) being included in the deal, to which a more expensive $500 million price tag had previously been attached. (The reportedly encompassed song rights align with those connected to the sale back in November of 2022.) Beyond this top-level description, concrete specifics about the precise IP are few and far between at present.
Even so, the reported purchase marks the latest in a line of blockbuster buyouts from Sony Music, which, to put it bluntly, hasn’t been shy about pursuing valuable catalogs created by or tied to controversial figures.
Running with the point, multiple reports have cited certain of Waters’ remarks as another contributing factor to the slow Pink Floyd catalog sale. And while that may be true, there are presumably fewer PR headaches associated with contentious comments than serious allegations of wrongdoing.
Earlier in 2024, Sony Music scooped up a stake in the song rights of Michael Jackson, whose work remains commercially prominent despite the inherent baggage of sexual assault claims against the deceased singer. Moreover, the major label has battled opposition to the investment from the artist’s family as well.
Bigger picture, Sony Music in June reportedly scored a $1.3 billion deal for Queen’s IP. It’s unclear whether the play is officially final, but the involved rights, like those of Pink Floyd, had also reportedly been on the market for some time beforehand.
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