(l to r) Attorney Karsten Dropmann, BMG SVP of legal and business affairs Lüder Castringius, Snap!’s Michael Münzing, EVP of repertoire and marketing Maximilian Kolb, director of creative operations and brand development Giulia Höck, and senior director of M&A and investments for continental Europe Tobias Bönsch. Photo Credit: Frederike van der Stræten
BMG has officially upped its stake in the catalog of Snap! by inking an agreement with the Eurodance group’s “mastermind,” Michael Münzing.
Berlin-headquartered BMG emailed Digital Music News this morning about its latest deal involving Frankfurt-based Snap!, having owned the act’s recorded catalog for roughly half a decade. Since then, the body of work at hand – including “The Power” and “Rhythm Is a Dancer” – has emerged as “a significant synch earner,” according to BMG.
Evidently looking to capitalize upon this ostensibly strong revenue showing, the Thomas Coesfeld-led business has now purchased “the writer’s share of royalties” from Münzing. Credited as Benito Benites, Münzing has penned Snap! tracks including those mentioned above, “Ooops Up,” “Cult of Snap,” “Mary Had a Little Boy,” and “Welcome to Tomorrow (Are You Ready?),” to name some.
Although BMG opted not to disclose the pact’s financial specifics, higher-ups did take the opportunity to acknowledge that the agreement “is thought to be the first of its kind in Germany over the last years.” And in a statement, BMG EVP of repertoire and marketing Maximilian Kolb touted the continued streaming and sync reach of the appropriate projects.
“SNAP! are a cultural touchstone for the Nineties which continues to resonate today, not just in streaming but also in synch,” said the 11-year BMG veteran Kolb. “We are pleased to have agreed terms with Michael Münzing which will allow to further secure the value of these great works.”
Today’s investment represents one of many recent IP plays from BMG, which, according to its 2022 earnings report, dropped a staggering $400 million on catalogs last year. (Among these 2022 acquisitions was a deal with another Eurodance musician, “What Is Love” artist Haddaway.)
To this point in 2023, the KKR– and Pimco-partnered business has scooped up the recordings of The Hollies and nabbed Paul Simon’s “royalty income in Simon & Garfunkel recordings.” More broadly, rising rates and an uncertain economy haven’t stopped the likes of Round Hill, Reservoir, HarbourView Equity, Armada Music’s BEAT, and even The Zombies from purchasing catalogs as of late.
That said, 2023’s initial eight and one-half months also delivered rumors of multiple blockbuster transactions that haven’t yet come to fruition. While the deals could still close, rightsholders haven’t confirmed the sale of a 50 percent Michael Jackson catalog stake, a 10 percent interest in Led Zeppelin’s body of work, $500 million worth of Warner Bros. Discovery music IP, or Queen’s over $1 billion catalog.