BMG Reports Double-Digit Organic Revenue Growth In First Half of 2024
• BMG achieved double-digit organic revenue growth of 12.5 percent and EBITDA adjusted growth of 35.5 percent in the first half of the year, with record EBITDA margin
• BMG successfully reorganized its operations, focusing the business on the core music functions to better meet the evolving needs of artists and songwriters
• Driven by the successful migration to direct digital distribution, BMG’s digital revenues grew by 20.3 percent year-on-year
As part of Bertelsmann’s 2024 Interim Report, BMG reported double-digit revenue growth and EBITDA margin at an all-time high, driven by a strong performance across its recordings and music publishing businesses. Revenues increased by 11.1 percent to €459 million (H1 2023: €414 million). Organic revenue growth was 12.5 percent, caused by strong growth in its digital income streams. The share of digital business in total revenues increased to 69 percent (H1 2023: 63 percent). Operating EBITDA adjusted rose by 35.5 percent to €122 million (H1 2023: €90 million). The EBITDA margin increased significantly to 26.5 percent (H1 2023: 21.7 percent).
As part of the Bertelsmann Boost strategy, BMG made 10 catalog purchases during the reporting period, bringing total investments since 2021 to around €900 million. The music division also signed well-known artists and songwriters in the first half of the year, including Mustard, YG, New Kids on the Block, and The Script in recordings and Cirque du Soleil, KT Tunstall, and Tyron Hapi in publishing.
In its recordings business, BMG achieved success with new releases by Jelly Roll, Lainey Wilson, Bruce Dickinson, Everything Everything, Sum 41, Crowded House, Pepe and Paco de Lucía, and Lenny Kravitz. BMG artists Lainey Wilson (Best Country Album) and Kylie Minogue (Best Pop Dance Recording) were each honored with a Grammy Award.
In its publishing business, new releases by Pashanim (“2000” reached #1 on the German and Swiss albums charts and “Mittelmeer” #1 on the German singles chart), Bring Me the Horizon, and Frank Turner were among the most successful. On behalf of its clients Steve Miller, Trevor Horn and Anne Dudley, BMG has a major share of Eminem’s hit single “Houdini,” one of the year’s biggest streaming successes. BMG songwriters collaborated on 13 songs from Beyoncé’s globally chart-topping album “Cowboy Carter.” In addition, BMG scored a viral hit with a cover version of Pitbull’s “Give Me Everything” featured in season three of the Netflix series “Bridgerton.”
During the first half of the year, BMG formed an innovative partnership with the TUM School of Management’s GenAI Lab at Munich’s Technical University. The successfully launched pilot program used generative AI to optimize the creation and performance of multi-modal marketing assets, yielding positive initial results to date.
To ensure the continuous improvement of its service offerings, BMG further increased investments in technology for digital distribution, music monetization, royalty collection and services, and music licensing to media customers. In addition, BMG Production Music signed a global synchronization agreement to provide production music for Amazon MGM Studios.
