Harmony has acquired Broadway Licensing International (BLG), a theatrical licensing company and writer, increasing the corporate’s presence in theatrical IP administration.
The deal folds BLG’s imprints — Broadway Licensing, Dramatists Play Service, Playscripts, and Stage Rights — into Harmony Theatricals. Monetary phrases of the acquisition weren’t disclosed.
Whereas the acquisition excludes Stageworks and the Broadway On Demand streaming platform, the deal offers Harmony entry to BLG’s household of imprints that symbolize authors and rightsholders together with David Auburn, Jocelyn Bioh, Jackie Sibblies Drury, Richard Greenberg, Lauren Gunderson, Katori Corridor, David Henry Hwang, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Michael Korie, John Leguizamo, Matthew López, Martyna Majok, Martin McDonagh, Conor McPherson, Alan Menken, Arthur Miller, Lynn Nottage, John Patrick Shanley, Sam Shepard, Tom Stoppard, Paula Vogel, Tennessee Williams, Doug Wright, Harry Potter Theatrical Productions, Hasbro, and Mischief Worldwide.
For Harmony, the transfer marks one other growth after launching its theatrical division in 2018 with Harmony Theatricals. The unit already homes the catalogs of Rodgers & Hammerstein Theatricals, Tams-Witmark, Samuel French, The Andrew Lloyd Webber Assortment, and “dozens” of recent signings annually.
Harmony says that Harmony Theatricals “is the one agency offering actually complete providers to creators and producers of performs and musicals, together with theatrical licensing, music publishing, script publishing, solid recording, and first-class producing.”
Harmony Theatricals, a Broadway producer and file label, has received three Tony Awards and two GRAMMY Awards over the previous six years.
“Bringing collectively these catalogs combines 150 titles and 400 authors which can be already shared between the businesses, in addition to creating new relationships.”
Sean Patrick Flahaven, Harmony
Sean Patrick Flahaven, Chief Theatricals Govt of Harmony, stated: “Harmony’s mission is to champion authors by selling and defending their work and empowering theatre makers to assist their exhibits attain audiences worldwide.
“Bringing collectively these catalogs combines 150 titles and 400 authors which can be already shared between the businesses, in addition to creating new relationships. I’m thrilled to place our folks and assets at their service. As with our crew of 90+ theatrical specialists at Harmony, my profession has been spent in assist of authors and producers. We’re grateful to the BLG crew for all of the work they’ve carried out constructing their catalog and for trusting us with it.”
Bob Valentine, CEO of Harmony, added: “We now have constructed Harmony Theatricals into one of many world’s most vital theatre licensors, producers, and file labels in an effort to additional our mission of elevating voices and impacting tradition.
“We sit up for dedicating our best-in-class infrastructure and educated employees to championing the celebrated works in BLG’s catalog.”
“We sit up for dedicating our best-in-class infrastructure and educated employees to championing the celebrated works in BLG’s catalog.”
Bob Valentine, Harmony
Dan Markley, Chief Working Officer of Broadway Licensing International, stated: “We’re theatre professionals who love what we do. BLG was based in 2017 earlier than the COVID pandemic and expanded over the subsequent few years, buying Dramatists Play Service together with different licensing firms whereas funding and stabilizing the corporate throughout essentially the most difficult time within the historical past of the American theatre.
“Now, Ted Chapin and I are more than happy to have discovered the best accomplice to proceed to guard our major stakeholders, the authors and playwrights who create the great works we assist make out there to performers and producers. By combining forces with Harmony, we will now guarantee best-in-class practices for many years to come back for all our stakeholders no matter market circumstances our business could should confront.”
Harmony’s acquisition technique extends past theater. The Los Angeles-based music rights firm absolutely acquired Los Angeles-based music distribution platform Stem in March. Sources informed MBW earlier that the deal is value someplace above $50 million.
In January, Harmony acquired a portion of songwriter, musician, and producer Johnny McDaid’s track catalog. McDaid is a key collaborator of Ed Sheeran’s – co-writing most of the British artist’s greatest hits – and can be a member of the band Snow Patrol.
“By combining forces with Harmony, we will now guarantee best-in-class practices for many years to come back for all our stakeholders no matter market circumstances our business could should confront.”
Dan Markley, Broadway Licensing International
In October, Harmony reportedly acquired “a extremely profitable Latin Music artist and songwriter” catalog in a deal valued at $217.3 million. That very same month, Harmony closed an asset-backed securities (ABS) transaction, which noticed the acquisitive firm elevate $850 million in debt financing by means of a non-public securitization backed by its catalog of music rights.
Music Enterprise Worldwide
