Iconic British rock group Pink Floyd has finalized a deal to sell their back catalogue and name-and-likeness rights for $400 million (€362 million) to Sony Music. This transaction, initially reported by the Financial Times and subsequently confirmed by Variety, stands as one of the most significant and lucrative deals in recent years, especially considering the band's iconic albums such as 'Dark Side of the Moon', 'The Wall', 'Wish You Were Here', 'Animals', and 'Piper at the Gates of Dawn'.
The agreement includes the rights to their recorded music but excludes songwriting rights, which remain with the individual composers. The name-and-likeness rights encompass merchandise, theatrical performances, and related rights. Despite decades of internal strife among Pink Floyd's members, particularly between Roger Waters and David Gilmour, the deal has been successfully concluded.
Gilmour recently expressed to Rolling Stone that his motivation for the sale was less about financial gain and more about escaping the constant decision-making and disputes that have plagued the band. He stated, 'I am not interested in that from a financial standpoint. I'm only interested in it from getting out of the mud bath that it has been for quite a while.' This 'mud bath' likely refers to the ongoing tensions between Gilmour and Waters, which escalated recently when Gilmour accused Waters of antisemitism.
Last year, Waters faced scrutiny from Berlin police for wearing a Nazi-style uniform during a concert in the German capital. He also won a legal battle to perform in Frankfurt after the city attempted to cancel the event due to accusations of antisemitism. Waters has consistently denied these allegations.
Two years ago, Variety reported that Pink Floyd was seeking to sell their recorded music for up to $500 million. However, potential buyers were reportedly deterred by a controversial 2022 interview with Waters in Rolling Stone, where he made provocative comments about Israel and suggested that Russia's invasion of Ukraine was not entirely unprovoked. This year, Waters was dropped as a solo artist by music rights company BMG due to his comments.
The news of Pink Floyd's catalogue sale follows Sony's acquisition of Queen's catalogue for over €1 billion earlier this year, along with significant investments in the catalogues of Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan.
