BMG increases revenue to €444 million, Concord merger accelerated to third quarter of 2026
BERLIN – Music company BMG continued to grow in the first half of 2026, while at the same time entering the final phase of the biggest corporate change in its recent history – the planned merger with US-based Concord. According to the half-year report of parent group Bertelsmann, BMG's revenue in the first six months reached €444 million, 4.9 percent more than in the same period of 2025, when it amounted to €424 million. Organic revenue growth, which excludes the effects of portfolio changes and exchange-rate movements, was even stronger at 8.1 percent. Bertelsmann states that growth was supported by both music publishing and recorded music operations, pointing to a broad-based increase in revenue rather than a contribution from only one segment. At the same time, adjusted operating EBITDA increased from €122 million to €127 million, while the margin remained at 28.7 percent, the same high level as a year earlier.
The results come at a time when the global music industry continues to expand, primarily thanks to streaming. According to IFPI data from the Global Music Report 2026, worldwide recorded music revenues in 2025 rose by 6.4 percent to a record US$31.7 billion, marking the eleventh consecutive year of growth. Subscription streaming revenues increased by 8.8 percent and accounted for 52.4 percent of the total recorded music market, with 837 million users of paid subscription accounts. Such a market environment is important for BMG, which is increasingly directing its business model toward digital distribution, rights management and the long-term monetization of catalogs. In 2025, digital revenues accounted for 71 percent of BMG's revenue, according to the company's annual results.
Organic growth faster than reported revenue increase
The difference between reported growth of 4.9 percent and organic growth of 8.1 percent shows that currency movements and changes in the business portfolio softened part of the underlying expansion of operations. Bertelsmann states in its half-year report that BMG recorded positive development in both music publishing and recorded music, with growth primarily organic. This is an important indicator in an industry where reported revenues can be strongly influenced by acquisitions, business disposals and exchange rates. At the same time, BMG increased operating profit without expanding its margin, meaning profitability remained stable despite continued investment. Adjusted operating EBITDA of €127 million represents an increase of around four percent compared with €122 million a year earlier.
BMG had already sharpened its business focus in 2025 through the BMG Next strategy. The company then reported €900 million in revenue and a record €284 million in adjusted operating EBITDA, with an annual EBITDA margin of 32 percent. Management highlighted a stronger emphasis on music publishing and recorded music, digital channels, more direct relationships with platforms, automation and analytics as key elements of that strategy. Results for the first six months of 2026 show that this direction continued, although the half-year margin cannot be directly compared with a full financial year because of the different revenue structure throughout the year. Bertelsmann also describes BMG as one of the parts of the group that contributed to the strong organic growth of the entire group in the first half.
Fourteen catalog acquisitions in just six months
Alongside organic growth, BMG continues to invest aggressively in music rights. According to Bertelsmann's half-year report, the company completed 14 catalog acquisitions from January through the end of June, while total investment in music catalogs since 2021 has reached approximately €1.6 billion. In its own results announcement, BMG described the same program as a record level of investment for a first half and expressed the cumulative value as US$1.8 billion. The difference stems from the currency in which the amounts were presented, while both official sources describe the same multi-year investment direction connected with Bertelsmann's Boost program. The strategy is based on acquiring copyright, publishing and recording rights that can generate income through streaming, licensing, synchronization for films, series, advertising and games, as well as other commercial uses.
Among the notable transactions in the first half of the year, Bertelsmann lists rights packages connected with Jelly Roll, Australian rock band Jet and Luca Anzilotti, co-founder of the eurodance group Snap!. In May, BMG announced that it had acquired the publishing interests of three of Jet's four original members – Nic Cester, Cam Muncey and Mark Wilson. This expanded its relationship with the band after BMG acquired its recorded music catalog in 2023, while a publishing relationship had existed even earlier. In June, the company also announced the acquisition of Anzilotti's publishing interests, further consolidating rights connected with the Snap! catalog. BMG had held the rights to the recordings of the group's entire catalog since 2016, and in 2022 it also acquired the copyright interests of the other co-founder, Michael Münzing.
The broader logic of these deals can also be seen in the assessment of Germany's Federal Cartel Office, Bundeskartellamt, which, in its analysis of the BMG and Concord merger, specifically highlighted the growing importance of the catalog business in the digital age. Streaming has extended the commercial life of older recordings and compositions because catalogs no longer depend solely on physical sales or occasional reissues. Songs can be reactivated through algorithmic recommendations, social networks, film and television licenses, advertisements and new forms of digital distribution. As a result, ownership of already established repertoire provides music companies with a relatively more predictable revenue stream, but also increases the value of high-quality rights and competition for their acquisition.
Frontline releases, new artists and technological expansion
Bertelsmann states in the report that, in the recorded music segment, new releases by artists such as Louis Tomlinson, Marteria, Evanescence, Jason Aldean, Skindred and Pacific Avenue contributed to the results. In publishing, more successful writers and works included those connected with Bruno Mars, Jelly Roll, Johannes Oerding, Blumengarten and Lucry, as well as Bebe Rexha. During the first half of the year, BMG also signed or renewed agreements with Jamiroquai, Carly Pearce and Tash Sultana on the recorded music side, while new names in the publishing portfolio included Gary Barlow and Afrojack. Such a combination of active repertoire and large catalogs enables the company to spread risk between new releases, whose results are less predictable, and existing works with a long history of demand.
Technology is the second important pillar of the strategy. According to Bertelsmann, BMG expanded its use of artificial intelligence in metadata and rights management, marketing and content creation in the first half of 2026, and also completed AI-assisted data enhancement across its catalog. The company also introduced BMG Motion AI, a solution for the scalable creation of animated visual materials for Apple Music. BMG states that it uses artificial intelligence and data analytics for more precise audience identification, digital marketing and catalog activation, as well as to increase the productivity of internal processes. In an industry where the ability to connect a large number of rights with the right user, platform and market directly affects monetization, metadata quality and automated management are becoming an increasingly important part of competitive advantage.
BMG and Concord merger closer to completion
The biggest change for BMG, however, is expected outside its regular operations. Bertelsmann and Great Mountain Partners announced a definitive agreement to merge BMG and Concord on April 28, 2026, with the initial plan calling for the transaction to close in the fourth quarter. In its new half-year report, Bertelsmann now states that completion is expected as early as the third quarter of 2026 and that the transaction has in the meantime received approvals from the relevant competition authorities. This represents an acceleration compared with the timeline announced in April. The German regulator confirmed its approval in June, noting that the transaction was still being reviewed in other countries at that time.
Under the agreed ownership structure, Bertelsmann will hold approximately 67 percent of the new company after closing, while Concord shareholders associated with Great Mountain Partners will hold around 33 percent. In addition to the equity portion of the transaction, companies affiliated with Great Mountain Partners will receive a one-time cash payment of US$1.16 billion. The combined company will operate under the BMG name, with its global headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee, and its European headquarters in Berlin. The publishing business will be named BMG Publishing, while recorded music operations will operate under the Concord Records name. This will bring together two major independent catalogs and operating networks with strong positions in the United States and Europe.
At the time the agreement was announced, Bertelsmann estimated that the combined company should generate approximately US$2.2 billion in pro forma revenue and more than US$730 million in EBITDA in 2026. BMG and Concord also set a medium-term ambition of US$1.2 billion in EBITDA, with growth expected from organic operations, additional acquisitions and synergies. According to the joint announcement, Concord has invested more than US$3 billion since 2020 in music publishing, recorded music, theatrical rights and distribution. The merger would therefore unite two business models that rely on long-term ownership and management of intellectual property, as well as on actively signing new writers and artists.
Bob Valentine to assume operational leadership of the new company
The management of the combined group has also already been defined. Bob Valentine, the current CEO of Concord, is expected to become chief executive officer of the new company, while Thomas Coesfeld, the current CEO of BMG, will assume the role of chairman of the company. Coesfeld has simultaneously been appointed future CEO of Bertelsmann, with his term beginning on January 1, 2027. In May, it was also announced that Björn Bauer will become chief financial officer of the combined company after the transaction closes, based in Nashville and also responsible for the team overseeing mergers and acquisitions. Such a structure shows that the investment strategy and further portfolio expansion will remain among the key priorities even after the formal merger.
Bertelsmann presents the merger as a step aimed at increasing the scale of the business at a time when ownership of rights, global distribution and investment in technology are becoming increasingly important for competitiveness. BMG and Concord have stated that they want to build an integrated company covering music publishing, recorded music, theatrical rights and digital distribution. Such breadth enables revenue from various forms of intellectual property use, but also increases the complexity of managing rights, data and contracts. That is why the companies particularly emphasize investment in technology, data infrastructure and artificial intelligence.
German regulator: a major merger, but with strong global competitors
On June 12, Bundeskartellamt approved the formation of the BMG and Concord joint venture after analyzing the effects on music publishing and the production and distribution of recorded music. The authority's president, Andreas Mundt, assessed that the merger would create one of the largest music companies in the world and that Bertelsmann would thereby significantly strengthen its position in the music business. The German regulator nevertheless concluded that the project would not significantly restrict effective competition, among other reasons because the new company would continue to face larger global competitors such as Universal Music, Sony Music and Warner Music. The proceeding specifically took into account the growing importance of catalogs, whose value and commercial exploitability are increasing with the growth of digital distribution and streaming.
That regulatory assessment also shows why BMG and Concord consider scale crucial. The largest international music groups can spread the costs of technology, distribution, analytics, marketing and rights administration across enormous portfolios, while smaller competitors must seek different efficiency models. Through the merger, BMG gains greater scale in the United States and additional catalogs, while Concord gains access to Bertelsmann's capital and infrastructure. The companies emphasize that they want to retain the identity of an independent music partner, but after the transaction their operational and financial scale will be significantly greater than that of either company individually.
BMG enters the second half of the year with growth and a major integration ahead
For BMG, the second half of 2026 will therefore be shaped by two parallel processes: continued organic growth of the existing business and preparation for integration with Concord. Financial results from the first six months give the company a favorable starting position – revenue is growing, operating profit is higher, the margin is stable, and the catalog investment program remains strong. At the same time, management faces the complex task of connecting the portfolios, teams, technology and commercial relationships of two major music companies while preserving relationships with writers, artists and business partners.
If the transaction closes in the third quarter as Bertelsmann now expects, the new BMG will already be operating on a substantially different scale before the end of 2026. For Berlin, this means retaining its role as European headquarters, while Nashville will become the global center of the combined company. BMG's results to date show that the company is not relying solely on growth through acquisitions ahead of the merger: organic revenue growth of 8.1 percent was noticeably faster than reported growth. However, the long-term effect of the merger will depend on whether a larger rights portfolio, a broader international network and greater investment in technology can be converted into sustainable growth without undermining profitability and relationships with creative partners.
Sources:
- Bertelsmann – 2026 half-year report, BMG financial results, catalog acquisitions and updated timeline for the Concord merger (link)
- BMG – official first-half 2026 results announcement, growth drivers, investment in rights and technology initiatives (link)
- BMG and Concord – official announcement of the merger agreement, ownership structure, management, headquarters and financial ambitions of the new company (link)
- Bundeskartellamt – decision approving the merger in Germany and assessment of the transaction's competitive effects (link)
- IFPI – Global Music Report 2026, data on growth in the global recorded music market and streaming in 2025 (link)
- BMG – annual results for 2025, digital share of revenue and context of the BMG Next strategy (link)
- BMG – acquisition of the publishing interests of members of Jet and continued management of their catalog (link)
- BMG – acquisition of Luca Anzilotti's publishing interests and consolidation of rights connected with the Snap! catalog (link)