Swedish entertainment and music investment company Pophouse says it has acquired the music catalogue, brand name and likeness of US rock band KISS.
Financial terms of the transaction are not being disclosed but the Associated Press estimated the deal is worth more than $US300 million ($456 million).
Pophouse Entertainment Group, established by ABBA’s Bjorn Ulvaeus, is also the founding investor in the ABBA Voyage show in London.
Pophouse previously partnered with KISS during the final night of their farewell tour in New York in December 2023, when the band unveiled digital avatars of themselves.
“Our mission is to fulfil the band’s vision to become immortal, and to let new generations discover and be part of the KISS journey and carry it forward,” Pophouse head of investment Johan Lagerlof said in a statement on the company’s website.
“With the help of the fans’ energy, the band, our expertise, and creativity – we will make that vision happen.”
Bassist and lead singer Gene Simmons said the band had “always been breaking new ground in popular culture”.
“This partnership will ensure that we continue to do so for years to come,” he said.
Pophouse said it would create digital versions of KISS, with an Avatar show planned to launch in 2027.
KISS are Pophouse’s second investment outside of Sweden, following the acquisition of Cyndi Lauper’s music catalogue in February 2023.
They’re the latest to participate in an ongoing trend of blockbuster acts and their rights holders inking deals to sell their back catalogues, often for impressive sums.
It’s big business — especially considering two-thirds of all music streamed is made up of catalogue music, and streaming accounts for 84 per cent of all music industry revenue.
Not every artist disclosed the amounts involved but some deals have been estimated at as much as half a billion dollars.
Artists such as Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Justin Bieber, Stevie Nicks and Shakira have all sold or had their catalogues sold.
In 2020 Bob Dylan sold publishing rights to his catalogue of more than 600 songs to the Universal Music Publishing Group.
The singer’s collection includes modern standards like Blowin’ in the Wind and Like a Rolling Stone. Industry experts estimated the deal was in the range of $US300 million to $US500 million.
In 2021, Warner Music Group reached a deal with David Bowie’s estate for worldwide rights to the prolific singer’s recorded music catalogue from 1968, including Space Oddity and Let’s Dance.
Terms were not disclosed.
Not all artists consent to or have had control over the sale of their catalogues.
In June 2019, music manager Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings announced that it had acquired Big Machine Label Group, which was led by Scott Borchetta and home to Taylor Swift’s first six albums, for an estimated $US300 million to $US350 million, the New York Times reported.
In response, Swift started to re-record and release new versions of those albums, labelled Taylor’s Version, in an attempt to reclaim her masters.
Reuters/AP