Warner top man Edgar Bronfman Jr has given a video interview for FT.com in which he says he is optimistic about the future for the big music firms, bigging up the potential of new revenue streams like mobile services, advertising and tour promotion (he's right to see the potential of those revenue streams, though Bronfman-dissers like Hits Daily Double are sure to point out that the Warner's chief's previous attempt to move his company into live entertainment, by acquiring Bulldog Entertainment, ended in disaster – the new venture closed down almost immediately at the cost of $18 million – oh look, a quick check of the HDD Rumour Mill, and they just did).
Among the topics discussed in the interview are EMI, the rival it was long thought Warner would merge with in order to create another major of similar size to Universal and SonyBMG. The merger has been off the agenda since Guy Hands' Terra Firma acquired EMI last year, though some see an eventual joining of the two companies as something that could still happen in the future. On Hands' somewhat revolutionary attitude towards EMI, he said: "I do think having someone as insightful as Guy Hands can only be a good thing for the music industry and for recorded music particularly, because I'm sure he will have insights. He will make decisions. He will go in certain directions that perhaps none of us may have thought of before and if he's successful, that's great", while on the possibility of a EMI/Warner merger long term he concluded: "Anything is possible, but possible is not probable".
Bronfman was less keen to comment on negotiations between the major and Metallica, who only have one album left to go with the label. The metallers, once the luddites of rock, have got rather excited about the potential of the internet of late, leading some to speculate they will go it alone after their current deal is through, or perhaps they are the next candidates for a multi-million 360 degree deal with Live Nation. Either way, Warner could do without losing another high profile bankable act.
Anyway, you can see what he does comment on here.