It has been rumored for weeks. Universal Music Group, unhappy with the speed at which it will have the ability to release key releases from the Prince catalog, has demanded cancellation of its $30 million deal with the Prince Estate.
____________________________________
Universal Music Group has demanded that its $30 million deal with the Prince estate for the rights to release the late star’s recording catalog be canceled and the money returned.
The revelation came in court documents filed on behalf of the estate’s administrator.
The Prince Estate allegedly promised UMG the rights in 2018 to re-release many of his most popular albums from 1979-1996, when he was signed to Warner Music Group. But the rights to at least some recordings covered by Prince’s original contract with WMG do not expire until 2021, sources tell Billboard.
The team in charge of Prince’s Estate has changed since the UMG deal was done, and is now led by Spotify executive Troy Carter. So far, neither Carter or the other parties involved have commented on the filing.