Urie rumor debunked

URIE-LY GOTTA BE KIDDING: In the “don’t believe everything you read” department, that rumor floated Friday on Digital Music News about the imminent demise of UMGD President/CEO Jim Urie is unfounded and borders on the preposterous, say UMG insiders. The really interesting aspect about said rumor has to do with who planted this story? Perhaps it was a disgruntled former employee or a rival executive attempting to create chaos inside Universal as the top brass undertakes a restructuring of the company. Urie, who was hand-picked by Henry Droz to succeed him, is the most respected distribution exec in today’s business, having consistently kept UMG ahead of the pack in the marketshare competition over the years. He’s also dreamed up and launched a number of forward-looking initiatives during his years at the company, including deals with BigChampagne and TuneCore, as well as launching a crusade against illegal file-sharing by forming the lobbying organization Music Rights Now. And he’s well-liked by his peers despite being a mediocre golfer. (6/20a)