Google acquires the world’s largest music group? Free music!

Will Google have a free music platform?

In the last year, Lucian grainge-helmed Vivendi announced Universal Music group (world’s 4th largest music company) revenue was around $7.15 billion, a 10% increase from 2017, and by the year 2018, the revenues increased by another 5.7%. But the music giant, Vivendi had repercussions and opened up on a plan on selling UMG for a whopping price and the major bidders are predicted to be Google, Alibaba, and Apple.

Three years ago, the world found out that Google had made a play to buy 50% of Sony/ATV Music Publishing from the Jackson Estate. The stake, which eventually went to Sony Corporation in a $750 million deal, would have seen Google – now Alphabet, the world’s fourth-largest company– acquire ownership of over two million copyrights, including a deluge of hits going back decades.

“We had discussions with [Google] in the selling of the Michael Jackson interest to Sony/ATV,” revealed heavy-hitting US lawyer Joel Katz at annual music biz conference Midem in the summer of 2016. “It would have been a very interesting proposition, [Google] having a major interest in a major publishing company like that… then negotiating with the record companies and saying: Hey, we don’t have to license you!”

Katz was referring to Sony/ATV’s gargantuan industry clout, as it effectively has a power of veto over every track and album related to its copyrights. As such, had Google bought into Sony/ATV, it would have acquired part-control of much of the music business – and often been able to dictate to the major record companies when and where their biggest hits were permitted to appear, Said the Vivendi head.

Apart from Google, business leaders like Tencent, Alibaba, Liberty Media, Apple, and Verizon are on the run for acquiring the music group but considering the later incidents with Google. The French music industry giant Vivendi, might move on with selling their company to Google.

DOES THAT MEAN Google will have a free music platform without any subscriptions?

Google’s YouTube has recently brought 9.99$ per month plans into their music streaming application, alongside Apple music, Spotify has its own payment subscriptions plans. If UMG deal is on, Google might have a separate music platform but it’s a million dollar question authorities have to answer.

If the acquisition happens, Google’s venture into music industry will be a game changer and we hope unlike other music companies google pivot will be a different approach to their music label, is it going to be 50% or the complete Universal Music Group let’s cross fingers for the official statement.