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AEG favourite to get the MAMA Group
By CMU Editorial | Published on Monday 21 May 2012
Live music giant AEG Live has preferred bidder status to buy HMV’s live music business the MAMA Group, according to the Daily Mail. Although final details of the deal are to be confirmed, the paper says the global venue owner and tour promoter is now favourite to acquire the MAA business, generating HMV in the region of £65 million, to help cut back the flagging retailer’s estimated £180 million in debts.
It’s thought AEG Live will take complete ownership of MAMA, at least initially. As previously reported, there was speculation that the live major would only be interested in the bigger of the MAMA Group’s venues, in particular the Hammersmith Apollo, and the rest of the live business might be sold to a different buyer, or be subject to management buy out.
If it does take ownership of the whole MAMA Group, it will be interesting to see what AEG will do with the company, which has core venue and festival divisions as well as a number of periphery units such as The Fly magazine and marketing agencies. As also previously reported, MAMA’s artist management division, SuperVision, has been wound down after key managers opted to leave the group amidst concerns about HMV’s sale of the company.
Sony Music and equity types Oakley Capital were both also bidding for the live firm, though according to the Mail talks are now focusing on AEG Live’s bid.
