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UMG PICKS UP RONDOR FOR AROUND $400 MILLION

Alpert & Moss Drop A&M Suit,
Enjoy Fine French Water
In one of the industry's largest music publishing acquisitions, Universal Music Group has purchased Rondor Music, one of the world's leading independent music publishing companies, for a reported $400 million in cash and stock.

The deal, which had been expected for months, was jointly announced Wednesday by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, Co-Founders, Rondor Music, and Zach Horowitz, President and Chief Operating Officer, UMG.

As part of the deal, the suits filed by Alpert and Moss against UMG regarding the duo's former label, A&M Records, have been settled.

Founded in 1962, Rondor Music has remained one of the most successful independent publishers of the last half-century. Rondor Music will continue to operate as a freestanding operation in the U.S. and U.K.

Lance Freed, President of Rondor Music, will report to Horowitz and continue to oversee operations. David Conrad will continue as Senior VP of Rondor in Nashville, and Richard Thomas will continue as Managing Director of Rondor in the United Kingdom. Universal Music Publishing Group, headed by worldwide President David Renzer, will handle administration globally and provide additional support services.

"Hearing Rondor's music is like hearing chapters of popular music history," said Horowitz. "These are gems—some of the most popular and recognizable songs ever recorded. And Rondor is far more than a static catalog. It has some of the most widely respected contemporary songwriters on its current roster and its management team continues to sign the stars of tomorrow. In addition to the breadth of the catalog, this presents a powerful synergistic opportunity for UMG because over a third of Rondor's top-earning songs are contained on master recordings released through UMG's record labels."

Rondor Music has a catalog of over 60,000 songs, including tunes written by such songwriters as the Beach Boys, Al Green, Otis Redding, Peter Frampton, Isaac Hayes, Supertramp, Tom Petty and Leon Russell.

"The Rondor catalog represents a whole bevy of cherished memories for me starting in 1962 with "The Lonely Bull," said Alpert. "I'm pleased that we found a good home for the songs, and that they will be reunited with the A&M catalog that Jerry and I built." Moss added, "I feel very lucky to have been associated with the songs and the writers that Rondor has represented over the years. I also have a sense of immense gratitude to Lance Freed and the tremendous team he formed to make the company the jewel that it is."

Freed has led Rondor's core creative team for over 20 years. Starting out in the mailroom of the company, he has been President since 1980, and has mentored such writers as Will Jennings, Annie Roboff, Melissa Etheridge, Peter Allen, Gerry Goffin, Paul Williams and Bryan Adams.

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