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  1. Asked: May 15, 2024In:

    Which top artists have recently sold off their music rights?

    David Grosso
    David Grosso

    Bob Dylan sold his publishing catalogue to Universal Music Publishing for an estimated US$300-400 million. Recently, Sony acquired his master recordings for approximately US$200 million. Neil Young sold 50% of his career catalogue to Hipgnosis, earning around US$150 million. Stevie Nicks also made aRead more

    1. Bob Dylan sold his publishing catalogue to Universal Music Publishing for an estimated US$300-400 million. Recently, Sony acquired his master recordings for approximately US$200 million.
    2. Neil Young sold 50% of his career catalogue to Hipgnosis, earning around US$150 million.
    3. Stevie Nicks also made a deal, giving a majority stake in her songs to Primary Wave for US$100 million.
    4. Imagine Dragons sold everything they’ve created so far for US$100 million.
    5. Whitney Houston handed over her entire catalogue to Primary Wave for an undisclosed sum.
    6. David Crosby transferred all his works to Hipgnosis for an undisclosed amount.
    7. Disturbed gave their entire catalogue to Primary Wave without disclosing the price.
    8. The Killers transferred all their releases up to 2020 to Eldridge Industries for an undisclosed sum.
    9. Lindsey Buckingham’s deal includes his Fleetwood Mac songs and solo material but the price is undisclosed.
    10. Barry Manilow sold his entire catalogue to Hipgnosis without revealing the price.
    11. Richie Sambora transferred all his Bon Jovi works to Hipgnosis for an undisclosed sum.
    12. Dave Stewart sold all his works with Eurthymics and beyond to Hipgnosis without revealing the price.
    13. Blondie made a deal for 197 songs with Hipgnosis without stating the price.
    14. Chrissie Hynde transferred all her works with The Pretenders to Hipgnosis for an undisclosed sum.
    15. Air Supply gave a portion of their catalogue to Primary Wave, but the price was undisclosed.
    16. Culture Club also sold a portion of their assets to Primary Wave without revealing the price.
    17. Devo transferred a chunk of their catalogue to Primary Wave without disclosing the price.
    18. Jim Vallance, Bryan Adams’ songwriting partner, transferred his share of songs to Round Hill without revealing the price.
    19. Ryan Tedder, known for his work with OneRepublic, transferred his works to Hipgnosis without disclosing the price.
    20. Shakira sold 100% of 145 songs to Hipgnosis for an undisclosed sum.
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  2. Asked: May 13, 2024In:

    How long does copyright protection last for music and what are the different durations based on the date of creation?

    David Grosso
    David Grosso

    Works created on or after January 1, 1978 are protected for 70 years after the author's death. If there are multiple authors, the protection extends to 70 years after the last author's death. In cases of works made for hire, protection lasts 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whicRead more

    • Works created on or after January 1, 1978 are protected for 70 years after the author’s death. If there are multiple authors, the protection extends to 70 years after the last author’s death. In cases of works made for hire, protection lasts 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever comes first.
    • For works created before but published or registered after January 1, 1978, the copyright term is usually calculated similarly to works created on or after that date. However, the copyright cannot expire before December 31, 2002, for any work, and for works published after that date, the copyright end date is set to December 31, 2047.
    • Works created and published or registered before January 1, 1978, enjoy a copyright protection of 75 years from the publication date with a copyright notice. For works registered in unpublished form, protection lasts from the registration date. Any pre-1978 copyrights still existing on October 27, 1998, received a 20-year extension, totaling in a protection term of 95 years.

    It is important to note that even though some classical music pieces may be in the public domain, specific recordings of these pieces are likely still protected by copyright.

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