BMG has reported its fastest growth in the history of the company, which launched almost 15 years ago.
It’s a strong set of results for CEO Hartwig Masuch, as he prepares to hand over to Thomas Coesfeld next year.
The BMG financial performance in 2022 was published within the results of parent company Bertelsmann.
BMG increased revenues by 30.6% year-on-year (more than €200m) to €866m - the fastest growth ever recorded. Organic growth contributed 22.8%.
The recordings business grew by 38%, while publishing was up by 26%. Sync revenue across both was up 34%.
Streaming was key to the strong growth at BMG. Digital publishing revenue increased by 43%, while digital recorded revenue increased by 48%.
In a joint message to staff, Hartwig Masuch and Thomas Coesfeld wrote: "It was a historic year for BMG in which we grew our scale significantly, but just as importantly improved our capabilities, delivering more money more quickly than ever before to artists and songwriters with better service, underpinned by our core values of fairness and transparency.
"2022 proved once again that we are successful not in spite of those distinctively BMG values, but precisely because of them."
The UK was the second biggest territory by revenue (12.2%) after the US (53.9%). BMG’s home market of Germany was responsible for 12% of revenue.
During 2022, BMG also made its largest annual investment in music content to date, totalling more than half a billion euros.
BMG invested a record €50m in the acquisition of music catalogues and artist signings in 2022. In the financial year, BMG made 45 acquisitions in the catalogue sector alone, including the catalogues and licensing rights of artists such as Peter Frampton, Jean-Michel Jarre, Fools Garden, Harry Nilsson, Simple Minds, Primal Scream and Chris Rea.
2022 proved once again that we are successful not in spite of those distinctively BMG values, but precisely because of them
Hartwig Masuch & Thomas Coesfeld
In the recorded business, BMG concluded new contracts or extended existing ones with artists including Rita Ora, Logic, Julian Lennon, Marteria, Stefflon Don, Nickelback and Jason Aldean.
"Importantly, we are not just a passive financial investor in these prized catalogues," wrote Masuch and Coesfeld. "We are a music company committing to breathing new life into these artists’ legacies... These transactions reflect not just our belief in the future of music, but the belief of artists and songwriters that we will deliver for them and the belief of our parent, Bertelsmann, in our ability to execute on our strategy."
Top-selling albums in 2022 included releases by Jason Aldean, Louis Tomlinson, Mötley Crüe, 5 Seconds Of Summer, Backstreet Boys, Buena Vista Social Club, Kylie Minogue, and Bryan Adams.
In the publishing business, the catalogues of Bruno Mars, Mick Jagger & Keith Richards, Juice Wrld, Kurt Cobain and Roger Waters generated high revenues, noted BMG.
The year’s top-selling new releases for publishing came from artists including DJ Khaled, Kontra K, George Ezra, Carly Pearce, Maxwell, Riccardo Zanotti, Peter Fox, RAF Camora, Kraftklub, Max Giesinger and Johannes Oerding.
New contracts or contract extensions/renewals were signed with Halsey, Elvis Costello, Robin Kadir, Bazzazian, Slowthai, Jessie Reyez, Afrojack, Montez and Lucry.
Moonage Daydream, the film about David Bowie released by BMG, became the most successful documentary of 2022, with worldwide revenues of €12.2m.
BMG’s EBITDA was up more than €50m to €195m.
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