I.B. BAD CLARIFIES THE SITUATION AT SONY MUSIC

“It's war at Sony Music Group,” the item trumpeted. “Sources say Rob Stringer, chairman of Columbia/Epic, and Barry Weiss, group chairman/chief executive of RCA/Jive, are jockeying for power, and quoting an unnamed insider who claimed, “It's like a couple of polar bears, and their iceberg is melting. All the employees know what is going on, and it is real." It was even rumored that Weiss' deputy, Chief Operating Officer Ivan Gavin, nearly came to blows with Stringer's right-hand man, Steve Barnett, chairman of Columbia Records.”

Yes, there were words between Gavin and Barnett during at a party during Grammy week, Sony insiders confirm, but the argument was merely about some now-forgotten political aspect of the party itself, rather than a manifestation of the rumored power struggle. Further, this was nothing close to a physical fight; in fact, neither executive even lost his temper, though bystanders did observe some snarling through clenched teeth during their confrontation.

Music business annals are full of tales about executives coming to blows, but the vast majority of these stories are urban myths. Indeed, apart from Sean Combs’ 1999 beat-down of Interscope’s Steve Stoute with a champagne bottle, a chair and a phone, most industry veterans would be hard-pressed to recall another specific instance in which any big shot ever actually swung on another exec.

The rumor that ran through the business around Grammy time was that one of the two supposed protagonists, either Stringer and Weiss, was trying to become the other one's boss, and that these attempts at a power play had been rebuffed by the higher-ups.

This scenario leads to the question, who are these higher-ups? Was this a reference to Rolf “If you cant play nicely with others, I will throw you out” Schmidt-Holtz?

Such a scenario is theoretically credible in the sense that Schmidt-Holtz has been criticized for his ongoing inability to orchestrate anything like a collegial working environment between the two companies. You’ll recall that Schmidt-Holtz stunned the industry with his abrupt ouster of Don Ienner and Michele Anthony, followed by the firing of Charles Goldstuck and a several other corporate politicians who played the game poorly by choosing sides.

The smart money says to look for no changes in the Weiss/Stringer situation. But most expect a resolution of the ongoing discussions involving Schmidt-Holtz’s contract, which is nearing its end. If he isn’t re-upped, who will be tapped to oversee the music group, and will the chosen one do a better job than his predecessor at melding the two corporate cultures?